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#if you're still gonna try to argue after everything i've said then that's bc of *your own* issues that *you* need to sort out with yourself.
savventeen · 9 months
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you say the stupidest (sweetest) things
pairing: seungkwan x gn!reader rating: 16+ (for swearing) wc: 4.5k prompt: seungkwan + "things you said at 1am" summary: you say stupid shit on the best of days, so when seungkwan comes over when you're having a bad bout of insomnia, the last thing he expects to hear from you is an accidental love confession warnings: insomnia, mental health issues, dissociation mention tags: fluff, friends to lovers, first kiss, reader is a little unhinged but who isn't tbh, they're also highkey allergic to genuine expressions of love/affection but they're working on it, banter, stimming, wrestling like children to try and work through emotions, reader is some flavor of lgbt+ (they make an "i've never done anything straight in my life" joke), reader's pov is dramatic bc they're dramatic oops a/n: this is for @dokyeomin as a part of my emergency commissions (check out the post here) and this was only supposed to be 1k but it 100% got away from me... i hope you still enjoy the fluff and all of the attached nonsense <3
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From: Y/n 🔪 [11:47pm]
yo kwannie if i impulsively decide to go to the 24h convenience store how harshly do u think they'll jusdge me for buying every flavor of gummy candy available *judge i wanna see if i can melt them down into one Ultimate Gummy u know for Science
Seungkwan pauses brushing his teeth and stares down at your messages.
To be fair, it's probably not the strangest thing you've ever texted him. He's known you since your second year of college, after all, so he has about half a decade of experience with all of your various y/n-isms under his belt now.
Which is how he knows to trust his gut when it tells him that this probably isn't your usual brand of nonsense.
He spits the toothpaste into the sink and dials your number. You answer on the second ring.
“Before you say anything,” you start, “I was only half-serious about the gummies thing. Like, it's a fun idea, you know? In theory. But in actuality? I do not want to deal with the mess that it would create. Or the smells. Well, the smells might actually be pretty good depending on—“
“Uh-huh,” he interrupts dryly. “Y/n, when's the last time you slept?”
The beat of silence that follows is enough to confirm his suspicions, and the hesitant “Um” that follows is just the icing on the cake, really.
He sighs. “The fact that you have to think about it says enough.”
“I don’t need to think about it,” you argue petulantly. “I just… don’t wanna tell you.”
“Y/n...” he groans, pinching the bridge of his nose.
“Look, I know, I'm sorry.” And you do sound a little bit sorry, at least. “I'm just. Having an episode. Don't worry about it.”
His shoulders droop as the words sink in. “Episodes” are what you've taken to calling your intermittent bouts of serious insomnia.
Generally speaking, you sleep about as well as the average twenty-something with a caffeine addiction. But every few months or so, it's like your brain completely forgets how to shut off and you end up staying awake for 40+ hours straight.
“Well,” he says, putting his toothbrush away and going back to his bedroom. “You know that ship has sailed, right? You know I'm gonna worry about it.”
Your deep sigh crackles over the line. “Yeah, I know.”
“So. Where're we at this time?”
He mentally braces himself. The two of you have done this enough times now that he knows that you know there's no point in trying to lie or beat around the bush.
“Uhhhhhhh, I'll be hitting the 46-hour mark in about 20 minutes.”
“Aish.”
The fact that you can say that so casually makes his heart hurt. He knows that whenever he doesn't get enough sleep, he makes sure everyone knows it and thus babies him accordingly. But you've always been so intent on hiding anything and everything you struggle with. It's taken years for him to bully himself past the walls you keep hidden behind shit-eating grins and an over-willingness to help.
“Okay,” he says, moving to the dresser to grab an extra set of clothes. “I'll be over in an hour.”
“Wait. What?”
“You heard me.” He tosses the clothes onto his bed before going to grab one of his duffle bags, firmly asserting, “You've got an hour to mentally prepare yourself for my arrival.”
“Honey, you've got a big storm comin',” you quote at him without hesitating.
“You sure do,” he assures with a snort. “Better get ready to feel the wrath of my friendship.”
“Why do you have to love so aggressively?”
He rolls his eyes while he throws his clothes into the duffle bag with one hand. “Because it's the only way you'll accept it, idiot.”
“No, it isn't.”
Your pout is so audible through the phone that Seungkwan has to stop and glance at the screen in disbelief.
“Y/n. Y/n L/n. Do not stand there and lie to my face like that.”
“I'm not lying!”
“Not—” He gesticulates wildly with one hand like he's going Can you believe this shit? to an invisible TV audience. “Okay, tell me this: what did you do the last time I sincerely monologued at you about how much you mean to me as a friend, hmm? No bits, no bullshit, just me telling you how much I love you and how amazing you are.”
A beat. “I'll hang up on you, Kwannie, don't test me.”
He barely resists the urge to shove his face into the bedspread and scream. “You're literally proving my point right now!”
“Kwannieeee,” you whine, because you know he's right.
“Also, because I'm never letting you live it down, I will remind you exactly what you did."
You say his name again, but it's muffled, and he assumes it's because you're hiding your face in shame.
“I gave you a sincere, heartfelt speech about how much your friendship has changed my life for the better and made me become a better person—” he ignores your wordless pterodactyl screech, “—and how do you respond? By staring at me like a deer caught in the headlights, slowly raising your arms to give me double finger guns, winking, and then slowly backing out of the room like an awkward mannequin!”
“...”
“Well?” He puts his free hand on his hip. “Do you have anything to say for yourself?”
“… I’ve changed a lot since then.”
Seungkwan rolls his eyes before moving to continue packing his overnight bag. “It was literally three months ago.”
“Yeah, and? Doesn't change the fact that I've changed,” you assert.
“Into even more of a nuisance? Yes, you're absolutely right.” He smiles when he hears you scoff playfully.
“Listen here, Boo Seungkwan. You know that well-rested Y/n is ready to throw down with you at a moment's notice. What do you think sleep-deprived, zero-impulse-control Y/n is going to do the second you get to their front door?”
“Stop referring to themself in the third person, hopefully,” he mutters, finally zipping up his bag and heading to the door. “And then after that, they're going to let me bully them into resting.”
“Hmm. The council has heard your proposal, briefly pondered it, and deemed it “unnecessary” on the basis of: they're a bad bitch that can't be stopped by neither time nor physics nor any god of your choosing.”
Seungkwan scoffs as he puts the call on speaker and sits to put on his sneakers. “Well, “the council” can go fuck right off.”
“What if the council would like to fuck right on?”
Pausing in the middle of tying his laces, he blinks down at his phone. “I'm— what?”
“Okay, real talk, what do you think it would mean in this case? Like, would this be like a 'hop on' versus 'hop off' situation? Or more like an 'I'm down for this' versus 'I'm up for this' kinda situation? Because it would have very different outcomes depending.”
Seungkwan decides that this is a debate better left for another time. “I think it means that I'm going to be at your house soon and that if you're not in your pajamas with hot Sleepy Time tea and the series Planet Earth ready to go, there will be consequences.”
“Booooooo, you whore.”
He finishes tying his laces and jabs his finger at the phone. “Consequences, Y/n.”
“Ugh, fine.”
“See you soon, love you, bye.” He hangs up before you can get another word in, but doesn't move from his seated position in the entryway.
Slowly, he takes a deep breath in and lets it out, taking a moment to lean back on his hands while he stares at the back of his front door. Specifically, at the large collage of sticky notes and pictures and doodles that have taken up residence there.
A few of the notes are ones he's gotten from other members of your shared friend group over the years (the one from Chan that reads "if u eat my rice i'll eat ur kneecaps xoxo" hangs proudly in the center, right next to a picture of him sleeping that Seungkwan managed to capture from an extremely unflattering angle). But most of them are from you.
Dumb puns, meme references, bullshit animal facts you made up just to get him to laugh… almost all of them are stupid in that extremely charming way that only you somehow manage to pull off.
But the one he's staring at now is almost completely hidden by other notes and pictures that have been added to the collage. It's a pale blue, the ink starting to fade a bit with time — the first note you ever gave him, back when you two were just people who happened to sit next to each other in an astronomy class.
Even though most of it is hidden, he doesn't need to be able to see all the tiny words you crammed into the small space to already know exactly what it says.
how do u make a space party? u planet :P u looked sad today, hope this makes u feel a little better also if this is 2 forward feel free 2 pretend i don't exist. or punt me in2 the sun idk u'd be doing me a favor tbh
He'd almost skipped class that day because of how bad he'd been feeling, but he'd decided to try and push through. And before that day, neither of you had interacted with more than a polite greeting and the occasional question about the homework.
But then you'd passed him that note, and he'd passed one back that said “that's dumb. but thank you” with a smiley face, and you'd passed another one back that said “do u think lizard people have ever been to space?” and the rest, they say, is history.
Seungkwan shakes his head with a sigh before standing up and grabbing his bag and his keys, striding determinedly out the door. He's got a best friend to take care of.
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Seungkwan should be at your place soon, and you're not quite sure what to do in the meantime.
You have your laptop hooked up to the monitor in the living room with Planet Earth queued up, you have the kettle filled with water and ready to go on the stove, and you have mugs and teabags ready on the counter next to it.
The Required Tasks™️ have been completed as much as possible without the arrival of your best friend, and now all that's left to do is wait.
Which, normally, you're not the worst at. You're excellent at entertaining yourself, actually, mostly because there's always something to think about. Whether it be about cute dogs that you've seen over the past week (I wonder if the pomeranian down the street will let me pet him next time), potential plot twists for the new fantasy drama you're a little bit obsessed with (what if Gregothy was cursed the whole time???), or generic ponderings of the human existence as a whole (do souls have the metaphysical equivalent of a fingerprint?), you're pretty much always thinking about something.
Which is totally fine and dandy and cool or whatever when you have the ability to, you know, shut it off. For example, when you need to do something simple and necessary like, oh I don't know, go the fuck to sleep.
You also hate when that manic mental energy somehow translates into kinetic energy as well. It makes you feel like a hamster in a cage, watching yourself running and running and running on that stupid wheel until you exhaust yourself.
Tonight's metaphorical wheel: stimming like wild in the kitchen. Flapping, rocking, (gently) slapping, making weird and fun mouth sounds, the whole shebang.
And again, normally stimming is fun. Stimming is great. But stimming because you feel like if you don't stop moving you're going to literally vibrate out of your skin is, to put it lightly, Not It.
It takes you about ten minutes to work out all of the energy until you no longer feel like your blood was replaced with pop rocks.
With a groan, you lower yourself to the kitchen floor and lay down face first. Because despite how exhausted you feel in every possible way, there's still something like an itch in your conscious, a fucking pea underneath the miles of mattresses that refuse to let you just. Fucking. Sleep.
Your pity party must've lasted longer than you realized (or, more likely, you dissociated for a hot second there) because suddenly someone's knocking at your door at the same time you get a text from Seungkwan.
And you know it's a text from Seungkwan specifically because you got Vernon to help you change your notification settings so that whenever Seungkwan texts you, the "i love you.. bitch" sound clip plays instead of a normal text tone.
For a fraction of a second, you contemplate slowly inching your way to the door like an uncoordinated caterpillar, but you swat the thought aside like you’re swatting a gnat and you awkwardly roll to your feet and make your way to your front door.
Without hesitating, you unlock the door, swinging it open with a flourish and sticking a finger right in Seungkwan's face before he can utter a single syllable, forcing him to cross his eyes.
You open your mouth wide like you're going to say something, pause for a moment, then tap your pointed finger to his nose with a quiet "boop."
He blinks, expression turning deadpan, and sighs. "I should have expected this, honestly."
“Yep!”
You let him into your apartment, and he makes himself right at home, mildly bitching at you as he goes to get the tea ready, and something within you shifts.
The inside of your head is still a bit of a dumpster fire, unfortunately, but inside your chest... something clicks into place that you're not sure that you're ready to name. Whatever it is, though, it's soft and warm and kinda feels like your heart is being hugged.
Smiling to yourself, you follow him into the kitchen.
💤 💤 💤 💤 💤
It was pretty much straight to “business” after that, and it only takes Seungkwan one cup of tea and two episodes listening to David Attenborough's dulcet narrations for him to knock right out, leaning heavily against your shoulder on the couch.
Which means it's now the perfect time to sit there and Admire Your Bro™️.
It's rare to see him so still, you think. He's an active guy, in pretty much every sense of the word, and you always feel a little honored when you get to be witness to his quiet, vulnerable moments like this one.
He looks so serene, face smoothed out and painted in soft twirling shades of blue from the screen of the monitor, though you can't see too much of it from this angle. Mostly you just see his cheeks and stupidly adorable button nose.
And you've seen the same thing a million times before — in all kinds of states and expressions — and despite how much you've tried to ignore it, each and every time you've caught yourself noticing just how cute Seungkwan is, it's caused that thing in your heart to scrunch up, full of the L-word feeling that you've kept unnamed for what feels like forever now.
Except, maybe that thing in your heart is tired of scrunching up. Maybe it's decided that it's tired of forever.
Maybe that thing has finally decided to burrow itself out of the walls you've built up because you find yourself finally allowing yourself to think, Holy shit, I think I'm in love with you.
You don't realize that Seungkwan has completely stilled against you, but you certainly notice when he suddenly throws himself forward so he can turn around and stare at you incredulously. Only he overshoots a little bit and ends up falling off the couch with a squawk and a dramatic flail.
"Oh my god, Kwannie are you okay?!"
He stares at you from where he fell, wide-eyed like you've grown a second head or like the time you'd tried to convince him that birds weren't real and actually just a government conspiracy.
"Am— am I okay? No??"
Now it's your turn to move off of the couch, coming down to his level to see if maybe he hurt himself when he fell. "Fuck, okay, did you hit something? Do you need an icepack?"
Seungkwan being Not Okay is maybe one of the worst things that could ever happen in the entire universe and you're trying not to panic as you reach out to check for injuries.
"No, no, stop—" he bats away at your hands and you stop in your motions, now kneeling in front of him. "I'm not hurt!"
Your brain does the cartoonish screech thing as it comes to a halt, and you furrow your brows. "But.. you just said you're not okay?"
"I'm not!" His eyes are still wide in shock, but he also looks confused and maybe a little bit like he's about to cry?
Oh no. If he cries and it's somehow your fault (because it has to somehow be your fault) you think the world might actually end.
"Okay, uh. I am— confused,” you start, sure you must look as lost as you feel. “But, um, what can I do to help?"
He swallows, and a part of you realizes that he's looking at you with an expression you've never seen before. "Did you mean it?"
Knowing that it's significant but not yet knowing why, you maintain eye contact. "Mean what?"
"What you just said."
You blink. "...that I'm confused?"
He shakes his head. "No, before that."
You have a hard time remembering what you just said when you're not sleep-deprived and worried you've just somehow accidentally caused irreparable emotional damage to your best friend. "Uh... when I asked if you were okay?"
"No, fuck," and it's a shock for some reason, hearing him cuss right now. You hear him say much worse things all the time, but you think it might be the way he said it — with a kind of desperate vulnerability that you're not sure you've ever heard from him before.
That thing in your chest twinges and you think maybe you're the one who's gonna start crying.
He says your name like a plea, and then he's on his knees right in front of where you're kneeling on the floor, reaching forward to cup your face in his palms. "You said— Y/n, you said "holy shit I think I'm in love with you.””
Oh.
You're pretty sure your heart falls right out of your ass and bounces across the rug, judging from the way it comes to a dead stop. You blink at him. Full of new and sinking kind of dread, you whisper, "...I said that out loud?"
He laughs, but it's tinged with incredulity and sounds a little too close to a sob for comfort. "Yes! You did!"
And wait, no, your heart is still stuck in your chest, because you can feel it start pounding against your ribcage in double, triple, quadruple time. He must see the fear in your expression, because suddenly his eyes are narrowed in a determined scowl and he growls, "Oh no you don't."
Then you find yourself going down with a yelp as Seungkwan octopuses himself around you, trapping you within the confines of his surprisingly strong arms and legs as he basically tackles you to the floor.
You try and wiggle away even as you know it's useless, and he grits, "Y/n dammit, answer my question."
"Why were you even awake?” You deflect, getting an arm free and trying to give him a wedgie. “You were supposed to be asleep!"
"I was supposed to be asleep?!” He screeches, easily evading your reach and poking your ribs to get you to reflexively pull back your arm. “You're the one who hasn't slept in literal days! And stop avoiding my question!"
"No!" He has you trapped once again, and you resort to licking his arm.
"Oh my god!"
He muffles his scream into your shoulder, long and frustrated, and then he just... goes limp. He loosens his hold and just lets his full body weight kinda crush the parts of you he's ended up lying on and just... lays there.
This is your chance, you know — to wiggle free and escape and run away from your feelings just like you always have.
But, for some reason, you don't — that scrunched-up thing in your chest holds you back. You stay there, lying beneath Seungkwan on the floor of your living room at one-something in the morning, and the two of you just breathe.
"It's okay, you know," he murmurs after a moment, so quiet you barely hear him over David Attenborough still narrating softly in the background. "If you didn't mean it. It's okay."
Holy shit, I think I'm in love with you.
And you realize how easy it would be to play it off, to blame it on the sleep deprivation, the way you blurted it out like that — to say (to lie) you meant it completely platonically, like the way you propose to Mingyu at least once a month when he cooks you all dinner.
And you also realize, quite shockingly, that despite how a part of you still desperately wants to run away, the larger part of you wants to stay. Doesn't want to run. Doesn't want to lie anymore.
You swallow heavily, briefly close your eyes, and take in a deep breath. "And if I did? Mean it?"
This time, you do notice when Seungkwan goes still. Slowly, he lifts his head so he can look you in the eyes.
When he doesn't say anything, just continues to look at you with an unreadable expression, you try to continue.
"Would you— would that— would it be okay? If I meant it? When I— when I said that I'm in love with you? Is— because um, like you said, it's okay if it's not, and uh—"
Your nervous rambling comes to a stop when he once again cups your face, but it's gentler than before, closer to a caress. The whole time you'd been talking he'd been slowly sitting up, and now he's on his knees next to where you're still lying down on the floor, looking down at you like all the hope in the world is somewhere to be found in your expression.
"Y/n." he says your name like it's something precious, and you feel the absurd urge to burst into tears. "It would be very okay." His thumbs make gentle arcs across your cheeks. "And just to be clear: you mean it in a non-platonic sense, right?” He chews on his lip. “Hopefully, in a very much romantic sense?"
Staring at him staring at you, eyes bright with hope and a little bit of wonder... you can only imagine you must be looking at him the same way. Your chest feels like it's full of helium but also like something warm and gooey is sloshing around in there. And all that hope and wonder and holy shit is this actually happening? is causing your tongue to stick to the roof of your mouth, and all you're able to get past your lips is a breathless, "Hopefully?"
"Oh my god," he groans in frustration, but it's light and airy and makes you think of amusement park rides and fairy lights and how you want to annoy the shit out of this man for the rest of his life, if he'll let you. He's shaking his head, smiling, beaming, and he asks, "Why can you never give me any kind of a straight answer, huh?"
"Because it's my life's purpose to be the bane of your existence until the day we die," you say, reaching up to hold his face too. "Also because I've never done anything straight ever in my life."
And then your body is moving before your brain can think it though, dragging him down until you can press your lips to his and finally, finally know what it's like to kiss Boo Seungkwan.
He makes a little noise of surprise, one that you can feel buzz against your lips before he melts into you. And oh, any thoughts you might have had are forcefully ejected from your brain because all you can focus on are his lips pressed to yours, the way they move slowly, gently, turning this chaste kiss into the most scorching experience of your life. His nose bumps against yours and the heat of his warm breath sends tingles throughout your body, and his hands, fuck, his hands are still holding you gently but also with a firmness that feels like he doesn't want to let you go.
And then he's pulling away, and you whine at him because this may be the cruelest thing he's ever done to you ever in your entire life. "Noooooo, why'd you stop?"
"Because, as much as I'd love to continue to make out with you on your floor while an old British man narrates about life on the Serengeti—” he mercifully ignores the way you choke on your spit at the way he talks about making out with you so nonchalantly "—it's past someone's bedtime."
Your mouth drops open in offended shock. Was he actually going to put you to bed like a child? Like you both hadn't just declared your romantic love for each other? "Are you fucking serious?"
He just stands up and crosses his arms, looking down at you with a single raised eyebrow. You take the part of you that finds it annoyingly attractive and promptly smother it, crossing your own arms from your position on the floor.
"I'm not a baby," you definitely don't pout.
"Hmmm...” And then the bastard fucking pouts at you. “But you're my baby."
You blink at him.
"Welp, that was nice while it lasted,” you grunt, rolling to your feet, “but I suddenly need to relocate to Antarctica and become a penguin herder.”
He pulls you into his arms with a laugh, and you let him, burying your face in the crook of his shoulder.
“You know,” he starts after he's held you for a few moments. “This isn't how I ever imagined how us confessing to each other would go.”
You snort.
“But also,” he continues, “it feels very 'us' doesn't it?”
"Yeah,” you murmur, not bothering to lift your head from his shoulder.
“Mmm, is someone finally sleepy?” he teases, starting to waddle you both towards your bedroom. “Did all the emotions finally wear you out?”
Instead of nodding, you lightly kick him in the shin and the sappy part of your brain that is currently in charge of everything thinks that his indignant squawk is one of your most favorite sounds.
The sappy part of your brain is right, of course, and when you wake up in your bed 15 hours later and accidentally smack him in the face, the urge to run is a little bit smaller than it was before. And the way he flushes bright red after you sleepily kiss him on the cheek is an image you're going to cherish until the day you die.
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ashes-writing · 11 months
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stranger things ● forever, pt 2 ● s.harrington
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warnings
{ part 1 } <- can be found by clicking. everything else I've started will be updated asap. this just grabbed hold and i had to lean into it, that's why there are two updates for it in one day.
Angst, hurt comfort, internal angst (because reader/you and Steve apparently love to overthink fucking everything), baby talk (your kid is 3. she's still grasping speech.), so much dad!steve fluff omg, robin has a crush and might get the girl, (Barb. it's barb and i am fully prepared to die all alone on this hill.), small town judgment and rumors and shit ( if curious.. this has both to do with eventual Robin/Barb and also bc stevie, in my mind, looks like she could be steve's actual daughter bc drama ), huge changes to seasons 1 thru 4 (Everyone but Jason lives, Max is not in between life or death, Billy's brush with death has redeemed him.. slightly, starcourt is rebuilt, the portal to the upside down is closed PERMANENTLY), vaguely hinted at that Vecna may have mentally tortured Steve and it may have gotten in his head a little when Vecna 'attacked' his mind in my version of events for this, alcohol/smoking mentions, eventual filth (probably gonna have Steve's known breeding k*nk front and center, fwiw.), swearing, arguing, roommates trope eventually, slow burn (as slow as I can tolerate tbh ), reader has not had a very good life prior to Hawkins, ( more will come on that later trust me )
Reader/you are Robin Buckley's cousin. Reader/You was born female and you identify as female with female parts and a 3 year old daughter named Stevie and reader/you have personality + a past and backstory. This is self indulgent and I do not apologize.
word count
5302 exactly. I uh.. got carried away.
summary
“Okay, but.. For whatever reason, she’s attached to your friend. It might get annoying, Robin.” you point out after turning your attention back to the television for a few minutes and having a little more time to think about it.
Robin thinks what you’ve just said is hilarious and she’s doubled over laughing as she pauses to look at you and shake her head. “You don’t know Steve. Trust me. This will not get annoying for him. And anyway,” Robin rolls onto her stomach and looks at you, “He likes her.”
aka, the one in which Robin -and Steve also Barb watch Stevie while you try to interview for a job.
taglist + shoutouts
-- taglist is here. if you wish to be added click the bolded part to be taken to it. if you're here for eddie/gareth or other guys from ST and don't want to be tagged please let me know.
@allelitesmut
@chaoticcancer - just wait. my heart was also like ahhhh.. writing these two parts. I really hope you like this, thank you for reading!
@caravelofthesun
@dylanwritesgood
@eddiemuns0nl0ver
@just-a-blue-nerd
@music4life42
@slyisbehindyou
@spaceconveyor
@tbmunson bestie. babe. babesss. i had to do this okay? we needed it. and i proceeded to go ham. oopsies.
other links
masterlist ● steve's masterlist ● about + rules
TWO
You must've put in an application at every place imaginable all over town. It's been a week and the phone lines have been silent. You're starting to wonder if you'll get any callbacks.
"Will you relax? Someone will call, okay?" Robin speaks up from the doorway of her room. You sink down to sit on the bed. "I'm seriously having my doubts."
"They will." Robin is unwrapping a bomb pop and holding it out to Stevie. Stevie takes it and climbs up onto your lap. You grimace at her reddened shoulders from an afternoon spent in the kiddie end of Hawkins pool and she leans back against you as Robin leans forward to hit play on yet another movie Steve Harrington rented for your daughter. Tonight it's Alice in Wonderland and as the opening credits roll, you're surprised to find yourself wondering what he's doing at the moment. It's a thought quickly buried as deep as you can.
As Alice finds herself in Wonderland on the television screen, your aunt's landline rings and you slip off the couch so Stevie goes to sit in Robin's lap. Until she remembers the glittery 'picture' she drew earlier and goes to get them both because she's made one for Steve too, a little thank you for being so nice to her when she knows she might be annoying at times.
"Who's this one for?" Robin asks, looking at the squiggles, circles and squares covered in glitter and drawn in vibrant red marker beneath. The purple glitter is falling off the page, settling on Robin’s bed. 
"Steve. I make him dragon. Only he doesn't breathe fire, he breathes toasts."
Robin laughs and smiles. "I see that. I'm gonna put mine right here. On my bulletin board." She hugs Stevie again and Stevie is hugging back, playing with her hair.
"'Kay!" Stevie laughs, looking up at Robin. “I like Steve. He’s sooooo nice.”
“Oh you do, huh?” Robin laughs again. Stevie nods. 
You wander back in and Robin speaks up. “Well?”
“That was the secretary job I applied for? I’m a ‘risk’ but they’re willing to give me a shot?” you’re still a little shocked because when you applied for the secretary position at some office in town, they were literally the last stop. You didn’t think they’d even look at your application, let alone hire you. “They want me to come in for face to face interviews tomorrow.”
Then it hits you. Your aunt Janet has to work. “Shit.”
“What?”
“I can’t, Robin.. Your mom has to work.”
“And?”
“And, I can’t take Stevie. I also can’t leave her alone.” you bite your lip as you mull it over.
Robin speaks up. “I’ll take her to Family Video with me. I’ve got a shorter shift tomorrow and it’s gonna be slow as hell anyway.”
“Robin…” you eye her warily.
“I’ll take her.” Robin repeats, firmer. “It’ll be fun. Won’t it, Stevie?” Robin gazes down at Stevie. “A little help here?” she asks, fluffing Stevie’s hair. Stevie is nodding. “Please, mama? I be so good.”
“Okay, sweetie, but aunt Robin is working. You have to be a good girl.”
Robin laughs. “Relax. She’s an angel.” she looks over at you and now both of them are begging.
“Okay, alright. Fine. The second I have money again I’ll pay–” you start to tell Robin you’ll pay her but she’s already shaking her head. “You’re not. I wanted to do it.”
“Okay, but.. For whatever reason, she’s attached to your friend. It might get annoying, Robin.” you point out after turning your attention back to the television for a few minutes and having a little more time to think about it. You’re grasping at straws because you’re already seeing Stevie form a little bit of an attachment to Robin’s best friend slash co-worker and you’re just so afraid that sooner or later, the novelty is going to wear off for the guy, leaving your little girl heartbroken and missing something she’s never actually had and most likely never will.
A father.
Robin thinks what you’ve just said is hilarious and she’s doubled over laughing as she pauses to look at you and shake her head. “You don’t know Steve. Trust me. This will not get annoying for him. And anyway,” Robin rolls onto her stomach and looks at you, “He likes her.”
“Yeah. Now, in theory, when he only has to deal with her a few minutes here and a few there. A whole day with her underfoot is different.” you take a deep breath. “I’m just..”
“I get it. You don’t want Stevie to get too attached.” Robin mumbles quietly, nodding in agreement. “You need the job, right?”
“Well, yeah, I’d like to find an apartment sooner or later. I’d like to be able to do things for Stevie..” you trail off, letting the rest of your sentence go unsaid. Because Robin knows exactly how awful your mom was now, the two of you had a really long talk recently. You finally told her everything that’s been going on, full honesty. Instead of letting her believe everything was fine like you’d done before.
Robin nods. A grim look on her face as she shakes her head. “I wish you’d told me and Mom everything way sooner.”
“I didn’t want you guys to worry.” you answer, going quiet. “Okay, alright. Don’t let her annoy him, please?” you give Robin a pleading look and Robin nods. “I’m telling you though,” she insists, “Stevie is not annoying to him. Like… not even a little.”
“Robin.” you laugh and shake your head. “He’s probably got an image or something.”
“Yeah, as a giant dingus.” Robin states, laughing. “I know what you’re thinking. Just stop overthinking already, okay? Steve Harrington is a good guy. He’s not going to treat her like dirt because she’s three.”
You blow at damp strands as they fall down into your eyes. “I just.. She’s never really like.. Attached herself to a person like this before.”
“Could have everything to do with her mommy being stingy.” Robin teases gently, laughing as she looks up at you. Stevie wanders back in with a yogurt cup and spoon. Robin reaches out, pulling her up before you even get the chance. “Guess what, sparkles?”
“Yeah?”
“Your mom finally gave in. We win. You can come to work with me tomorrow.” Robin and Stevie share a laugh and Robin takes Stevie’s spoon and takes a bite of yogurt for herself. “We can watch movies all day.”
“Yay!” Stevie claps her hands together in excitement. “Will my fwiend be there?”
Robin laughs softly. You tense up slightly. Look at your daughter with a soft smile as you warn, “Sweetie, you don’t need to bother him too much, okay?”
“Otay.” Stevie nods. But she has no intention of listening because she likes being around Steve. He’s nice. Really nice. And he gives her piggyback rides sometimes. He tells her stories about dinosaurs and some weird thing called basketball that he used to play and really likes a lot. He showed her how to tie her favorite purple sneaker earlier when he dropped off her aunt Robin after work, because her shoe was untied and he said he didn’t want her to fall on her face.
CONTINUED
The morning comes too early. And it’s off to a not so good start. You’re rushing around because you forgot to set an alarm the night before, and the button’s popped off the only ‘suitable’ shirt you own for an interview.
Stevie’s missing her shoe and she can’t find her current favorite stuffed animal, a stuffed husky that Robin won out of the claw machine outside of Big Buy when they went in to pick up groceries for your aunt Janet. So she’s upset. Robin spots the shoe and holds it up. “Aha! I knew it was in here somewhere!”
“Fank you!” Stevie throws her arms around Robin’s neck. Robin grabs the hair brush from her dresser and motions for Stevie to sit in front of her. You laugh. “She’s tender-headed.” you warn as you flip over your own hair and try to make something out of the wild and thick mess of curls you have going on now, no thanks to your old reliable blow dryer quitting earlier. You’re in the midst of scrunching your hair to create a more defined curl pattern when Stevie wanders over, bending down to look up at you through a curtain of hair. “Mama! Mama, your skirt dirty.”
“Shit.” you say it without stopping to think and just as Stevie looks as if she’ll repeat it, you tack on quickly, “Mommy didn’t mean t’ say that, cupcake. You’re still a baby. That’s an adult word.”
“I know.” Stevie answers, giggling. “It sound funny.”
“It’s not, though.” you smile at your daughter and laugh softly. “You’ll let your aunt Robin braid your hair but you won’t let me? I might cry.”
“Don’t, mama. It’s just aunt Wobin do it better!”
You pout a little, flipping your hair over to stand and look in the mirror. Robin notices the stain on your skirt too and nods to your aunt’s room across the hall. “My mom’s got a suit or something? I think?”
You nod. After digging through your suitcase, you happen to find a modest -and totally shapeless, t shirt style black dress, you grab that and rush down the hall into the bathroom of the trailer to change. 
“This looks like I’m wearing a trash bag. If I wind up working at this place I’m gonna have to get dressier stuff.” you wrinkle your nose at the thought. Because it’s money you don’t want to have to spend, but if you could luck into getting this secretary job, you’d be thrilled because it’ll be more money than you’ve ever made at once before.
And the job actually has insurance.
Robin’s friend Barb pulls to a stop outside and Robin’s giddy, laughing and smiling as if she could float. She drops a quick kiss to Stevie’s head and hugs you, lingering in the doorway. “I’ll see you in a little bit!”
You laugh and nod. “Yeah!”
After Robin’s gone, you scramble some eggs and squeeze an orange to make some juice for Stevie and as she eats ketchup covered scrambled eggs and a piece of fried ham, you try to finish getting ready.
You hate the shapeless dress, it’s one of your least favorite articles of clothing and even adding a belt to it doesn’t do anything to make it look better. You laugh at yourself in your cousin’s full length mirror on the back of her closet door and you toss the belt at your open suitcase on the bed. “Just get it over with. You’re probably not getting the job anyway, they said you were a risk to hire.”
Stevie’s sitting on the floor watching you. “We go, mama?”
“Yeah, we should get going,cupcake. Turn off the tv.”
Stevie pushes the button to turn off the television atop the dresser at the foot of Robin’s bed and you scoop her up,carrying her out. As the two of you walk out of the trailer, the girl with red hair is outside skateboarding again.
Stevie gives her a wave and the redhead waves back, quick to turn back to her skateboarding. The muscular blond with the mullet is leaned in the open door again, you can feel him staring. When he grins at you, cigarette smoke billowing out of his mouth, you manage a stiff wave and turn your attention to getting Stevie fastened into her car seat.
It’s a hard pass on the guy for you. He’s exactly the type of guy who fathered Stevie when you were 17. You are not going down that road again. And as you slip into the driver seat, a thought pops up out of nowhere. Surprises you a little when it does.
,, he’s not as handsome as Steve Harrington, either.” and as soon as this thought rises, you’re quick to shove it back down.
He’s definitely not an option.. You know, if you were even considering anything. The last thing any guy your age is going to want is to get a package deal and you’re just not willing to settle for anybody who won’t love and cherish your little girl as much as you do.
As you drive into town, you hum along with the radio, watch as the tree lined blacktop turns to buildings and houses. You pull to a stop in the parking lot of Family Video right around the same time that Robin and her friend Barb are pulling to a stop. You watch as Barb leans in closer to your cousin and you smile softly to yourself.
Robin mentioned someone in her letters around Valentines Day. You’re wondering if Barb might be the girl she mentioned. You hope so, because the way Barb looks at your cousin when she’s not looking is the sweetest thing you’ve ever seen with your own eyes, hands down. Robin spots you as the two pull away from their super close conversation and she grins brightly, waving.
As Robin and Barb wander over, Stevie’s already grumbling as she fusses with the way her upper harness in the seat likes to hang up. “I just wanna get out! Stupit buckle.” as she fumes and keeps trying to work with it, you lean over and unfasten it. Gently caressing her chubby little cheeks as you look into big brown eyes. “Mama will be back later to get you, alright? Be a good girl for aunt Robin.” you go quiet, adding a second later, “And don’t bother Steve so much when he’s working, please?”
“But mama..”
“Stevie Robin..” you using her first and middle name has the  desired effect, but she’s pouting and not happy about it. “Otay! I try not to bother him! But if he wants t’ play, I not stop him.”
You laugh softly and press a kiss to her hairline. As Robin opens the door and scoops up Stevie, she’s laughing. “Ready for a big adventure, sparkles?”
“Uh-huh!” she laughs and smiles, hugging against Robin. One of her braids is already trying to come undone. You smile at Barb. She smiles back as she reaches for the old backpack you use to keep everything Stevie needs inside when you have to leave her with sitters and you fight down the usual guilt that comes rushing up when you’re thinking about just how well used that backpack is by now and how it means you hardly get to spend any time with your daughter like you always dreamed you would when you were little.
The time your own mother refused to spend with you.. Unless, of course, she took you along with her to try and ply single men by playing the single mom who needs sooooo much help card. 
“She’ll be fine, ___.” Robin’s gentle teasing and the reassuring grin she gives you has you nodding. Smiling at her even though leaving Stevie with them while you go off for an interview is the last thing you want to be doing.
You’d rather be spending all day with your little girl. Making a blanket fort in the living room of your house. Making crustless peanut butter and jelly sandwiches as you both lie around, you reading her book of Grimms fairytales to her. Cuddling. Until the man you love comes in from work, where you’d have a nice home cooked meal, not something frozen or canned or even burned beyond recognition.. The life you didn’t have and always longed for as a kid.
,, you really need to accept the fact that this is your reality. Unless you want to turn into her, parading an endless string of faceless and nameless ‘uncles’ in and out of your life, always leaving you hurt and confused when they were gone and she was mean and bitter all over again.” the thought comes and you shove it out.
You watch as the three of them disappear into the video store, door banging shut behind them. And then you put your car into drive and pull out, merging with traffic. Journey is playing on the radio so you hum along and you hope it’ll distract you from a full to bursting mind. You’re just focused on doing your absolute best at this interview. Because you have to get money coming in somehow.
CONTINUED
Steve’s flipping through the channels on the old tv set that sits down on the counter out of sight. His legs are reclined and he’s just.. Fighting the urge to pass out from exhaustion.
To say sleeping through a full night since March has been a struggle would be a gross understatement. It’s been literal hell on Earth for him because every time he starts to doze, he can feel the earth rumbling beneath him. The sensation of free falling and then a hard thud as he connects with solid. And then he can hear Vecna’s evil laugh all over again. The way Vecna forced him to watch his worst fears and deepest secrets play out in front of him just to torture him. He had to watch everyone move on and leave him behind. He had to watch as his parents just went on with life as normal after his ‘death’, totally unaffected. He had to hear every single dark thing he’s ever thought or felt but never given a voice to, on repeat. 
It’s not until his alarm’s going off every morning that the torment stops as Comfortably Numb starts to play and brings him rushing out, into another long day.
It was the same this morning and yet somehow, it wasn’t. Because Robin let it slip that Stevie was going to spend the day with them while you were interviewing at one of the offices in town for a secretary position. And somehow, knowing the little girl was going to be around to distract him all day just made things a little better.
She’s eating gummy bears that Robin and Barb stopped at the gas station in town to buy her as she makes her way over to him and motions for him to pick her up. “Tell me more about baske..About the game.” Stevie asks, holding out her bag of gummy bears to Steve as she smiles. “I wanna play too.”
Steve chuckles.
“Hang on, little bit.” he reaches for the remote, “Maybe there’s a warm up game on or a replay.” he flips through stations until he finds the channel he’s looking for. “That’s basketball.” he nods to a replay of an old Bulls game. “I used to play in high school.”
Stevie’s eyes fix on the television and she holds the bag out to him again. Steve takes a handful of gummy bears and pops them into his mouth as he arranges Stevie on his lap a little better. 
As this is happening, Barb nudges Robin. “I never thought I’d see this happen.”
Robin laughs softly and nods. “Me either. From what __ has told me, Stevie doesn’t meet strangers though.” she shrugs, “Does he seem off to you too lately? And it’s gotten a little more obvious since Nance and Jonathan left town.” 
“It has.” Barb admits, leaning against Robin slightly. Not enough to be obvious or invateRobin’s personal space but enough that she can feel the slight weight of the other girl and just..be close.
She wishes she could be so much closer. But she doesn’t know how to even begin telling her.
Robin feels her cheeks burn at the slightest hint of contact and she bites back the smallest whimper threatening to break free. She forces herself to pull together and calls out to get Steve’s attention. “Dingus, don’t get her into sports!”
“Looks fun!” Stevie is grinning and she’s turned herself to face Steve. “Open your mouth.” Steve opens his mouth as the little girl’s asked and Stevie tries to toss a bear in but she misses. The blue gummy bear settles on the front of his new polo shirt and he picks it off, eating it.
The bell over the  door jingles and Robin glances over to see who it is.
“Harrington! Yo! Dude!” Billy’s calling out Steve’s name as he wanders the aisles to search for his former enemy turned friend. He finally gives up the search and stops in front of Robin and Barb. “Either of you seen Steve or do I need t’ go over and drag his broody ass outta bed again?”
“Right here, Hargrove, jesus.” Steve speaks up. Billy nearly chokes on the gum he’s chewing as he sees Steve sitting behind the counter with the cute little 3 year old daughter of the hot mom living across from him and his stepsister and her mom in Forest Hills. “You stealin kids now, Harrington?”
“I came t’ him.” Stevie sasses, leaning in against Steve just a little. Steve laughs and shrugs. Robin speaks up. “Yeah, he stole her from me! It took two hours to convince her mom I’d be able to watch her today when she went in for the interview. He’s had her since Barb and I got here.”
“You get her all the time, Robbie.”
“And? She’s my sparkles.” Robin argues back with Steve playfully. Billy chuckles. When he spots the game on tv he laughs to himself. “Girls don’t like that sh–”
“Mama said that’s adult word.” Stevie warns, giving Billy a very stern little look. Billy snickers. “It is, huh?”
“Mhm.”
Steve looks up at Billy. “She wanted to watch it, actually.”
“I did!”
“Anyway, what’d you want?”
“You’re comin with me tonight, dude. Munson’s band’s having a gig at the new bar. Told him we’d go.”
“I don’t have a choice, do I?”
“Fuck no. No you don’t, Harrington. I’ve got tomorrow off, I’m not gonna waste th’ night sober.”
Steve grumbles but shrugs. “Not like anything else is going on. Okay, fine.”
“I guess you can drive the Camaro because I’m not gonna be seen in the grandma mobile.” Billy smirks, he’s purposely being a shit now, hoping that maybe if he just keeps treating Steve like the way he treated ‘old Steve’ it’ll eventually piss Harrington enough to bring out just a little of the fight and spunk that’s been gone completely since March.
He’s really worried about Steve. He figured him out fairly easy right after he hit Hawkins their senior year. So he knows that walking out of the station with Eddie to his waiting car after everything played out in March.. Seeing the girl he wanted to be with more than anything reunite with a guy she claimed she ‘wasn’t sure about anymore’ when they looked like they’d reconnect. Billy knows this killed Steve.
And then there’s the whole Vecna thing, something Steve absolutely refuses to talk about with anyone. Even Robin, his best friend.
Billy just doesn’t want to see Steve go down the path he’s been down already.
“You loud.” Stevie mutters, giving Billy a dirty look as she leans against Steve’s chest and nods to the little television set. “We watch baske..” she gives up, “the ball game.” and Steve chuckles.
“Bas-ket-ball. C’mon, try it.”
“It’s big word! I 3.”
“And you’re really smart for 3, Stevie. C’mon, try it.” Steve coaxes.
With a little grumbling, he gets her to attempt sounding out the whole word. When she finally says it, she’s laughing and smiling, clapping chubby little hands together. “I said it! Aunt Wobin! I said it!”
Steve laughs. “You did.”
Billy snickers. “Try this one, shortstuff.. C-a-m-a-r-o.”
Stevie gives him a blank look and places a hand on her hip. “What that?”
Billy gestures to his haphazardly parked car outside the store and grins proudly. “The best car ever.”
“Uh uh! My mama’s car is best.”
Robin and Barb laugh. “Oooh.. a three year old just burned you, Hargrove.” Barb taunts and Robin laughs, " How'd that feel, Billy?"
“Shut it, both of y." Billy grumbles. "I'll be over at 9, Harrington. You're going if I have t' drag you."
"I said I'd go. Jesus." Steve gives Billy a dirty look. The guy has gotten it in his head lately that he's gonna make it his daily goal to find ways to annoy Steve.
Billy leaves and Stevie scowls at the door before looking up at Steve. "He's loud. It scare me."
Steve smoothes a hand over her hair. "He does, huh?" he looks down at Stevie and smiles, "I'll tell him to calm down, 'kay?"
"Fank you. I gonna go to aunt Wobin now. But I come right back." Stevie slips off his lap and makes her way over, instantly picked up by Robin. As she sees the movie Gremlins, she reaches for it and Robin laughs. "Sparkles, they don't stay fluffy the whole movie."
"Why not?"
"Because someone fed them after midnight." Barb answers, laughing. "Did you get tired of watching the basketball game, bub?"
"No. Just wanted to come t' you for a while."
CONTINUED
The afternoon is dragging by for him. Hardly anyone's come in since 9 that morning and the pattern seems destined to continue. Then there's a steady drizzle from a surprise afternoon storm as the rain drops pitter patter against the stores tin sheet roofing. Robin and Barb went to get the four of them some lunch and Steve flips the sign on the door from open to closed.
Stevie is asleep in his chair at the circular desk, huddled into a jacket he kept in back in case the store got too cold. The bag of gummy bears is dangling from her fingertips and about to settle on the floor when he decides maybe she'd be more comfortable on the couch in the office besides the break room.
But he's so damn tired, the 2 to 3 hours he's been getting a night since late March, those are catching up to him. He tells himself he'll just sit there and read a magazine while she naps but it turns into him laying down too, on the opposite side of the couch. And at some point, Stevie wakes up, comes over to where he's laying and crawls onto the couch with him, laying on his chest with her little arms around his neck.
This is how they're still sleeping when Barb and Robin come back a few minutes later. Barbs the one to find them and with a finger to her lips, she gestures for Robin to come to the door of the office. Robin peers in over Barb's shoulder, smiling to herself.
"Hang on. I actually think I have my camera with me out in the car." Barb hurries out to go get the camera and Robin stands in thr doorway watching the two of them sleeping on the old leather sofa. "___ is totally wrong in thinking Stevie is going to annoy Steve and I think this is exactly what he needs right now."
After Barb takes the picture, she and Robin decide to put the fast food they picked up for Steve and Stevie into the microwave and just let them sleep.
You make your way in, a brow raised at the silence. You're still processing the fact that somehow, you impressed the office interviewing you so much that you got the job. Robin grabs your wrist and practically pulls you to the office in back so you can see the way Steve and Stevie are sleeping on the couch.
"I hope she didn't bother him all day."
"She didn't. They crashed while we went to pick up food. Steve hasn't been sleeping at all and I think Stevie playing with Will when he came in with the other kids earlier tired her right out." Robin smiles, "by the way, Steve's kids have adopted her.. well, Max, she's still warming up to her but..pretty sure if you want a sitter all you have to do is say so."
"Steve's kids?" you question, brow raised. This leads to Barb and Robin sitting you down in the little break room and as they tell you everything, from the start to what’s only just come to a close -hopefully for good, as of March, you're gaping. “You..He.. Oh my god, why did nobody stop it? Like.. they had to know, right?” you’re looking at your cousin in concern and if you thought Robin Buckley  was a badass before, you really believe it now. Because all she does is shrug it off as if it were nothing. 
"The running joke is that Steve's kind of adopted them all..because we've been through so much." Robin goes quiet. Weighing how much she can tell you without you freaking out on her. Even thinking about the insanity she’s been through the past few years is still a lot for Robin to get her own head around, let alone try explaining it to someone else. 
"Wait..back up." You're trying to process it all, from secret government science labs to these kids -and their teenage counterparts, including Steve and Robin, having to fight as if they were in a war just to save the town. Robin can see you freaking out so she explains quickly, "Billy,Dustin Eddie and Steve saw the portal close because Eddie almost didn't make it up. That nightmare is over now, thank God."
,, well, you think to yourself, now I'm really fucked when it comes to finding a reason, any reason at all to keep from getting feelings for the guy." and of course, this is quickly overruled by one thought.
He's in the prime of his life. He probably wants to enjoy that. He probably doesn't want you and all your baggage plus your daughter. And thankfully, this is just enough, for now, to keep you from letting yourself get in too deep. 
Steve wanders in with Stevie on his hip and his hair sticking up everywhere. Stevie has never liked waking up before she's ready so she's got her sour face on. Steve hasn't said a word to anybody, he possibly hasn't noticed the three of you sitting at the table in the break room or the way you're staring hard right now yet.
He heats up Stevies food and then his own and when he turns around, he finds himself being watched intently by the three of you.
You smile at your daughter. Everything Robin's just gone into detail to tell you comes rushing back and in light of it, you decide that maybe he needs this. Maybe it's okay to let her seek him out until he says otherwise.
"Did you have a nap, cupcake?"
Stevie is still yawning. Steve sits her chicken nuggets down on the table and Stevie climbs into your lap to eat them. "We did, mama! And we watched movies and this boy came and he gived me crayons!" Stevie digs in the old and faded backpack until she finds the crayons that Will gave her earlier.
You laugh softly. 
"How'd the thing..the interview go?" Steve asks, locking eyes with you as he bites into his own double cheeseburger. 
"How did that go?" Robin asks.
" I got the job. And they're willing to let me bring Stevie if I need to." You smile. 
Steve is staring. And as you smile, he feels himself smile too because there is just something beautiful, something contagious about your smile that he can't help but do it too. 
"That's great!"Robin hugs you and you both laugh. 
"I start tomorrow. I'm working in the mornings, so open to 2?" 
You're excited. Maybe everything will finally start to go better for you and your little girl.
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jazz-bazz · 4 months
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@jesusbutbetterrr‘s Ghoulettes Weeks 2024! Week 2 : Stealing clothes & Period stuff
i think this ended up more borrowing than stealing? im basing this on my sister and i arguing about clothes
also im kinda reducing my time on tumblr bcs reports and exams 😭 so imma sometimes go poof a bit, but i’ll try my best to finish ghoulettes weeks!
i tried writing but my brain has been mush this past week 😭 plus ive been sick since wednesday so im sleeping a lot (or maybe thats because of the mush brain… who knows)
The ghoul dens that afternoon were a chaos, the ghoulettes were going on a girls only trip the next day, and they were packing. And if you're like me when packing, there's gonna be clothes every-fucking-where. Not helped that the ghoulettes were going to a concert too, and need a rawkin' outfit, of course.
"Has anyone seen my scarf? I need it for the trip," Mist shouted from her room.
"Scarf? You mean this thin scarf? Is this yours?" Cumulus replied, going out of her room into the hallway, a scarf dangling from her fingers.
"Yes! Thank you Lu!" Mist took the scarf with a kiss to Cumulus' cheek.
"Aw... I was planning to wear it, how did it end up in my room anyway?"
"I think it's from last time we piled there after going to the bar? Maybe it fell or something, I don't know, I was pretty tipsy then. Anyway, you have your outfit and makeup planned for the concert?"
"Mostly yeah, but I still want to rummage in Rora's room for some accessories, how about you?"
"I'm gonna ask Cirrus for a cute top and then borrow those boots from Rain that I've been eyeing, but otherwise I'm done packing."
"Whoa, I just finished picking outfit and still need to pack everything," Cumulus said with a laugh.
"I'll leave you to it then, gonna bother Rainy for the boots, bye Lu!"
"Bye Mist!"
On her way to Rain's room, Mist met Aurora, apparently also headed to Rain's room. But instead of Rain, Dewdrop was the one opening the door when they knocked on Rain's door, "Hello ladies, what can I help you with?"
"Hey, Dew. Is Rain here?" Aurora asked.
"They're in the shower now, but probably only for a couple more minutes, they've been in there since half an hour ago. Would you beautifuls like to come in?" He said while opening the door wider.
Rain's room was beautiful, light blue walls with a darker blue ceiling painted with sea lives, and when it's dark, some of the fishes would light up, and also the corals along the bottom edge of the walls, very relaxing. Mist and Aurora sat on the couch while Dewdrop got on the bed to wait for Rain.
"I thought you guys are packing for your trip?" Dew asked.
"Yeah, but you know we're going to that concert while on the trip? So we need clothes, and you know those pretty boots Rain has? I want to ask them if I can borrow that for the trip, but I'm almost done packing," Mist answered him.
"I'm almost done too, just wanna see if I can borrow one of Rain's dresses, if not then maybe I'll ask Cirrus."
"I'm sure they'll let you borrow them if they're not planning to wear it while you guys are gone."
Just then the door to the bathroom was opened and Rain stepped out with their hair wrapped in a towel, "Hi girls, to what do I owe the pleasure?"
"Hey Rainy, Mist and I were wondering if we could borrow some of your things for the concert, Mist said she wants your boots, and I want one of your dresses."
"Oh sure! The boots are over there, Mist, you can take them. And Rora, which dress do you want?"
"Thanks Rain! I'll return them back squeaky clean after we get back. Rora, I'm gonna finish packing and bother Cirrus, alright? Oh and Cumulus said she wants to ask you for some accessories later."
"Bye Mist! Thanks for the info," Aurora waved.
"Cirrus was just here before I showered asking me for a skirt, and now you two. What am I, a clothing store?" Rain said with a laugh, "Anyway you can take a look in my closet and pick the dress you want, Rora."
"Not their fault your closet basically is a store, babe," Dew replied.
"Well you also keep buying me new ones, Dew. And not my fault those clothes look good and I need them," Rain said with a little pout.
"Because you look good in them! And I like seeing you look good."
"Okay lovebirds, cut it out," apparently Aurora was done picking out her dress and showed it to Rain, who approved, "I'm gonna finish packing, you guys. And thanks again Rainy!"
On her way back to her room, Aurora met Sunshine, who asked her for permission to pillage in her closet for some clothes, "I've asked everyone else but I still lack some kind of pants or skirt or whatever, so you're my next target!"
"No problem, come on in, Sunny," Aurora said upon reaching her room, "What do you need?"
"I've got this crop top from Cirrus, this bandana for my hair from Lus, and this cardigan if it's windy from Mist, and I have a pair of cute socks to wear with this, so I just need pants, any ideas?"
"I have just the thing!" Aurora rushed to her drawers and dug around for who knows what. Then someone knocked on the door, "Hey Rora, can Cirrus and I come in?" They heard Cumulus say.
"Sure! Just give me a minute to look for my shorts somewhere around here, I just washed it a couple days ago."
"Oh hey Sunny! Still pillaging around for your outfit?" Cirrus asked.
"Yep, this is the last one I need then I can start packing my things!"
“Nice! You guys excited for the trip?”
“Hell yeah I am!” Aurora shouted while still looking for her shorts, with the other ghoulettes echoing her enthusiasm.
“Finally! Here Sunny, you can have these,” Aurora handed Sunny the thing she was looking for, “Oh yeah, Lus, Mist said you wanna borrow some accessories?”
“Yes, that’s actually while I’m here. Cirrus was done so she comes with to help me pick.”
“Go wild then, I’ve already picked mine so you can take whatever catches your eyes.”
————
this is actually more peaceful than when i was packing for a 10 days trip with my family, not helped by the fact that my sister, my mom, and i all wear the same size (except for jeans though) and the fact that i didnt bring much clothes home so i gotta borrow their things a lot, and that my sister and i kinda have similar styles so we argued a lot 😂
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golbrocklovely · 8 months
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It’s the fact Elton blamed snc for the hate comments, he said they are telling their fans that. Not okay and just trying to make snc look bad. I don’t think it’s appropriate that the fans are sending him hate, but saying they are coming from snc themselves it’s dumb
this might end up being super fucking long so i'm sorry in advance.
i read thru elton's replies on twitter and there was really only one that made it seem like he could have been implying what you're saying.
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i'm gonna believe that he was just mixing up his words bc i can't fathom him legitimately believing that snc are telling fans to be hateful towards him. they don't even mention him unless necessary, let alone tell fans lies about him and then tell them to spread the lies and send hate. i'm just gonna assume he meant something else bc he's a lot smarter than that.
so… i have always had a lot of opinions about elton. we all know this. i've jokingly said that this is an elton hate zone, but i'm gonna pull that back for a moment so i can really lay out how all of this is fucked up in both directions, if that makes any sense. i'm even gonna refrain from calling him old or any names really. i'm just gonna state the actual facts about all of this.
elton doesn't deserve hate. sure, he does things that i will never comprehend towards actual fans of his (like being really snappy or in the past outright blocking fans that criticized him). i mean, even on his newest video, you can go to his comment section and see ppl that actually sat thru the video and watched make comments criticizing the video and he responds back like they insulted his mother. even tho i don't agree with him or the way he interacts with fans, i still don't think he deserves hate. no one deserves death threats. no one deserves lies being spread about them, especially some of the ones i've seen about him on tiktok that eventually move onto twitter. but let's be honest here. let's have an open and honest conversation.
elton started a war he didn't think was gonna go for as long as it has. elton was not an innocent bystander that all of sudden started getting hate for breathing in snc's direction. that's not what happened.
snc came out with 25x25 and elton immediately stuck his nose where it didn't belong. he believed that they were stealing his content, tfil. reality is, that's not what happened. we physically can see everything they put out for 25x25 and none of it was ripped off or is in the same style as tfil. elton jumped the gun and believed fans who heard snc describe the content they were going to make (bc elton started this before snc had even filmed anything) and ran with it. he constantly would make comments about them copying and then eventually seemed to do the same with cerro gordo and other places snc went to. elton moved onto overnight when corey moved out, and snc had just started to ghost hunting again not too long after. elton then felt like they were in direct competition and made it his mission to put out as much content as possible, faster than snc, so that he could be seen as better. this later came back to bite him in the ass when he had 18 videos back logged and no editors and nothing to post for halloween weekend. he argued that he and corey were the only real ghost hunters in la when fazerug wanted to collab with someone. elton would go silent on snc for a while, and then pop back up with something else or some other random shade to throw in snc's direction.
all the while, snc were minding their business and making content.
there was a long period of time when elton was doing all of this bs that fans weren't picking up on it. i remember being one of the few that actively didn't like elton and i was an outlier. i remember arguing with ppl as to why elton was a dick bc a lot of his shit went unnoticed for a while. but then in 2022 is when ppl really started noticing the shit he pulled, especially when it became apparent that they were never gonna collab with each other ever again.
if elton truly felt slighted by what snc did, he should have talked to them behind the scenes. is it possible that he tried and snc blew him off or something else happened? yes, of course. i'm not gonna pretend that snc can't be dicks too. everyone has their shitty moment. but what we know, elton is the one that looks obsessed bc he's still shitting on a friendship that hasn't existed since 2020. if something happened bts, we don't know. share with the class there elton, and maybe ppl would side with you. you have made everything else a public affair.
what i think happened is that elton can't accept that he is no longer the bigger content creator. snc weren't always popular. there was a period of time when snc were smaller than elton and not as well known. the reason i know of snc is bc of elton. but i think that went to elton's head, and he can't accept that snc are bigger than him and technically "competition" even tho they aren't. and the moment he thought that they could succeed in a field he had plans to leave anyway (bc he did plan to shut down tfil and turn it into a documentary channel but that failed so he had to go back to travel vlogging), that was when he felt burned by snc. and if he didn't act the way he did, he could have coasted off of being known as snc's friend for a long time. but instead, he burned a bridge that didn't need to be burned. he shot himself in the foot and blamed everyone else around him.
all of this being said, the shit that has transpired on tiktok is really bad. idk why fans started lying about elton. idk if this is just backlogged old fans that want to start shit, idk if this is young fans that are reading into things that didn't happen. idk if it's fans that read too many fanfics and took it to heart. i'm not sure and i never will be. but what i do know is that there are fans on tiktok that lie about elton and it just becomes one long ass game of telephone.
elton has never made colby show self-harm scars. the pranks he pulled on snc were not that bad - snc were literally apart of the killing best friend prank aka the worse prank ever as dubbed by the internet. they signed off on the prank wars and what elton did. colby has admitted to a fan that elton never damaged his car. surprise! some pranks aren't real.
if you wanna dislike elton, you can - just actually dislike him for shit that really occurred. don't make up shit about him. and especially don't send him death threats.
and to any of elton's fans that think snc need to say something about this, i agree with you to a point. the thing is, even if snc come out and say something, it's not gonna stop the hate. case and point, literally any girl colby has ever been friends with. not to mention, elton has a tenth of the amount of subs that snc have. snc have more subs than there are ppl in the city of new york…… they can't control that many ppl. the best course of action is literally to tell fans they are wrong when they lie, and then report and block them. at this point, we have to govern our own fandom. snc can only do so much. snc are lovely ppl who are nice, but for some reason they attract the worse fucking fans. and this has been an issue long before elton.
if you, currently reading this, don't like elton - please just block him and move on. it is that simple. do not argue with me on this. just block him. there is nothing more to it. i don't pay attention to him at all anymore. i get told when he does shit and check it out for myself then. otherwise, i truly forget he exists. sending hate to him isn't gonna do anything except reflect poorly on snc. so just stop it.
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manofmanymons · 1 year
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I love how cute the late chapters of the truthful route are
This is more me rambling than any form of serious post or ~anaylsis~ I'm just replaying the route and constantly sobbing over how adorable they all are
They get along so much better with each other and their partners than at the start or in the routes where bitches be dying and it is very much fun seeing them have so many positive interactions
Even their arguing is more productive barring when Takuma FIRST got back but admittedly that was MOSTLY just Kaito ksksmd like there's a lot more "think we should do this because this" "I see what you mean but also consider—" and a lot less "maybe we should—" "FUCK YOU SHUT UP YOU'RE WRONG"
Super love the scene where Ryo and Kaito are talking to Renamon and at first Takuma freaks out thinking they're gonna start a fight but then Shuuji tells him to calm down and just trust them and they end up just being like "hey what you did sucked but we're on the same side so let's work together" and Takuma is like
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Like not even just the fact that those two of all people DIDN'T start shit but the fact that Shuuji wholeheartedly trusted them not to is SO insanely different from early game
Also the fact that after everything they've been through they can even still joke around with each other like there are just so many scenes where they're just being happy and silly in spite of it all
Minoru continuing to piss Ryo off by not treating him like he's older is so funny. Like they also clearly get along way better than before especially since Ryo doesn't take Minoru's dumbassery to heart anymore but that one scene where it was LITERALLY like "it's not what you said it's how you said it" had me dead jdjdnd they are such an old divorced couple. Not an old married couple. An old divorced couple.
I LOVE HOW YOU CAN PLAY TAKUMA AS THE WORST BEST FRIEND EVER AND JUST REPEATEDLY THROW MINORU UNDER THE BUS LIKE WTF MAN I THOUGHT YOU WERE RIDE OR DIE
Also love how pretty much all of them have at least one line that's just something along the lines of "we can do anything if we're together" because you KNOW none of them used to feel that way. Putting up with each other bc safety in numbers to actually genuinely trusting each other and being grateful for each other.
SUPER LOVE WHEN YOU'RE TALKING TO SHUUJI AND TRYING TO REASSURE HIM THAT HE'S NOT TOO MUCH OF A PESSIMIST AND IT'S GOOD THAT HE'S THE WAY HE IS AND IF YOU PICK THE WRONG DIALOGUE OPTION HE'LL JUST LIKE??? OPENLY ADMIT THAT HE KNOWS HE'S NOT THE BEST MAN FOR THE JOB AND THAT AOI AND TAKUMA ARE MORE SUITED FOR IT BUT HE APPRECIATES THAT TAKUMA'S TRYING TO BE NICE
This is turning into a "random scenes I love" post but I love when Minoru calls Kaito weird for being happy about Miu bossing him around and Takuma telling him to knock it off because there's probably more to it than that. Also Minoru being like "dude how can you put up with this" and Kaito being like "how long do you think I've been her brother for" ksjskdn like it is so funny to think that Miu has always been a little dictator and Kaito has always just gone along with it
Also all the kemonogami are precious I mean they're precious in every route but I laughed so hard when I purposely picked a wrong dialogue option and Labramon yelled at Takuma for being stupid ToT
Falcomon and Dracmon kill me every time they're on screen. They're the funniest characters in this whole game. Again I mean they're like that in every route but I think the humor lands better in the route where there's not constant death happening.
Also also I'm sorry but them being afraid of the ghost at the school was so funny to me bc they've MET other ghosts at that point and also the other times they've thought there were ghosts it was just like...a digimon. It's like in ghost game when Kiyo is like AAAAAH GHOST and it's like bitch you KNOW it's a digimon.
Also also also Kaito lying about not being worried about Dracmon bc he doesn't wanna freak Miu or Takuma out but then after getting him back being like I WAS SO SCARED SOMETHING HAPPENED TO YOU
Also also ALSO also Ryo and Shuuji being alive so I can see all their battle lines with the other characters. And how even lines between characters change over time. I actually don't know what all the lines are and if the change is related to the chapter or to the route or to their affinity but I know for a fact that the lines aren't always the same and I am always delighted to see a new one.
ALSOx5 CAN WE TALK ABOUT HOW ADORABLE THE MINASE SIBLINGS ARE FOR A SECOND? THEY ARE THE SWEETEST EVER.
Anyways these kids are the cutest friend group when their spirits are not actively being crushed by pointless deaths with no clear end in sight and it's just so nice seeing the kinda people they all are when they're not completely miserable and being pushed to/past their breaking points.
Like truthful may not be the most fun or interesting route but goddamn does it make me happy that the canon path is the one where they're actually allowed to grow and learn and be happy
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taegularities · 1 year
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Hello, lovely Rid 💕💕
I'm here to ramble to you about your ramble in response to my ramble lmao.
First of all, we really do think alike apparently, because I also checked the wordcount of my feedback before sending it and it's probably the longest one I've ever written and will ever write. Even without all of the quotes it's like over 2k words, I really don't know how to shut up 😭😭😭
Thank you so much for taking so much care to write such a thoughtful response, Rid 🥺🥺🥺 I always love reading your responses to feedback, and not only my own, because everyone points out different things and you give even more insight into the story and your writing process. I can just read about your stories forever, even when it comes to commentary about them.
I watched the mv for 'when you're gone' and I totally agree with you that that scene matches OC's mood in the beginning of the chapter very well 😔😔😔 It also matches the way I was reading the Valentine’s day drabble, smiling at how adorable they were when I knew how we left off in cmi6. I've said it before but I'll say it again, the thing that hurts the most is knowing how happy they're able to make each other and seeing how they're now hurting each other instead 😭😭😭
Also about the rambling to my sister lmao. Cmi is the first fic I've properly talked to her about (she reads fanfic too, just not bts ones) and I was fully ranting to her about how Jungkook was keeping everything in and trying to be strong until he couldn't anymore, and now he's ignoring OC, I don't think I've ever ranted so much even about a real life person lmao. I might have not painted him in the best light because of how mad I was though 😔😔😔 But I probably will just ramble about how cute he is to her later on when everything works out 😌😌😌
Also also everyone has been adding onto the sadness and angst here and I don't know how they do it, because every time I even think about OC with someone else or just them being even sadder I want to cry lmao. But I still love reading everybody adding to the chaos, I can't lie.
Last but definitely not least, I feel like I haven't properly checked in on you in a few days, so how are you doing, Rid? 🥺🥺🥺
I MISSED YOU (she says after just 2 days lol), honestly, i was gonna shoot you an ask today lmao but since you're here, i can just say it now: i hope you're doing well! how's school going? &lt;3
2k even without the quotes? i don't deserve you fr 😭 no but seriously, i copied it into a doc, and thought, kay, must be around 2k, like all of it (which is already a lot) BUT 5.7K.... and it was like 10 pages long !! i went "awwh" out loud 😭
and thank you 🥺 i was even thinking of making a smol commentary one day, when i've got the time, bc i could talk about them forever 😭 i really love reading everyone's reviews and theories, bc sometimes it makes me rethink things that i didn't consider even while writing.
ikr? i spent my teenage years crying to 'when you're gone', and i kinda remembered the song when you pointed out that 'he can be comfort even now' bit :( and you're actually so right. might argue that it hurts even more to relate it to the vday drabble.. especially, considering what's still to come.
hahaha i get it 😭 after that chapter, it was hard to hold a high opinion of him, bc he did kinda fuck up :// but yes, i promise you, there are gonna be scenes and chapters that are so fluffy, it'll be almost disgusting, really. it's so cute that you ranted about it to your sister hahaha i really love that you're so invested 🥺
I KNOW! it's amazing how everyone was ready to jail me for all the angst... yet, they keep coming up with scenarios and songs that break me for good 😂 i wasn't as much in pain when i posted the chapter as i am now hahahah
ahh i'm okay, ivi, thank you for asking! i think the biggest reason for my bleh mood was that i'm... very bored. i've been feeling pretty unproductive since i took this super long break after graduation and quit my last job. which is why i'm lowkey excited (but also very scared lol) to start my semester next week and my job in may! will join you in your academic misery hahah but yeah. i'll be busier, but i'm looking forward to it, bc i do like being busy! hope you're all good, too 🥺🤍
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cheekbites-moved · 2 years
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okay no that’s it i cannot fucking believe people are still fucking saying this shit, this goddamn often. i am fucking DONE with seeing it.
vanitas no carte is not mother fucking queerbait. 
it has multiple canon lgbt characters, as i have pointed out before, and a series that has multiple canon lgbt characters cannot fucking be classed as queerbait. bc if you fucking have lgbt rep, you’re not fucking being baited!
and no. vanoe’s current canon status is not a viable argument towards it being queerbait. at all.
the story is ongoing, and is honestly probably YEARS off of being finished.
if their current blatantly romantic coded status isn’t blatant enough for you, that is your own fucking problem. but it does not mean you get to fucking spread misinformation and disregard the canon rep it has given us.
vanitas no carte is an anime/manga series based in japan. which is a notoriously homophobic country. mochijun is working against a lot of restrictions to give us what she’s been giving us. especially since vnc is a shounen, and is not classed under any specific lgbt genre. we’re fucking lucky she has been able to get away with what she already has.
i am beyond tired of seeing her efforts being undermined & disregarded.
the world is not as progressive as you want it to be, and y’all sincerely need to fucking understand that. get a goddamn grip and learn what queerbait actually fucking is because vnc is not it, and painting it as such is just spreading harmful misinformation.
start valuing and appreciating the work that goes into giving us representation like vnc has. 
because it is rare to have multiple lgbt characters who just get to be characters. not stereotypes. not tokens. fully fleshed out characters with complexity, and depth, and personalities, like actual fucking people, who get to be treated like actual fucking people in the story itself.
and the only way for rep like that to become common is to appreciate the work that goes into fighting for it to be produced, & supporting that work. 
so seriously. genuinely. please stop fucking saying that vnc is queerbait bc it is not. and we won’t get another series like it if y’all keep fucking spreading that kinda misinformation.
ok? ok.
#vnc#vanitas no carte#vanoe#mines#im putting this in the tags so the ppl who spread this bullshit can see it.#but if you try to give me any shit on this post or in my inbox for it you are just getting blocked.#i've said all that needs to be said.#if you're still gonna try to argue after everything i've said then that's bc of *your own* issues that *you* need to sort out with yourself.#they're not my problem. & they sure as hell aren't mochijun's either.#sort them out on your own time.#same goes for anyone who tries to give me shit for the harsh tone or for the ppl who like to vague me when i speak out on this stuff.#i am genuinely at my fucking limit & i am tired of seeing a series that has given us so much being devalued & disregarded over bullshit.#i wish the world was more accepting & progressive but it isn't.  & that NEEDS to be understood & considered when judging representation#otherwise we will never fucking get anything beyond the harmful bullshit we currently have to deal with so commonly.#creators who are fighting against those restrictions & doing what they can w/out having their series cancelled need to be raised up.#so that the people who put those restrictions in place can see the value in giving us respectful representation.#that a series can have lgbt characters who get to be ppl & not have it classed as around that solely/specifically#& still be successful.#that is the only way this shit can be overcome. so stop fucking pulling bullshit and fucking it up for everybody for FUCK'S sake oh my GOD.
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kerie-prince · 3 years
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forgotten birthdays
Fred Weasley x Slytherin!reader
requested: (anon) Hiii, can I request something aangsty with Fred Weasley and slytherin reader? Like he got mad for something, maybe jealousy bc reader was spending much time with her house mates and he ignores her or says mean things to her but with a happy ending please 🥺
warnings: language
summary: Fred has his suspicions about your best friend and on the day of your birthday, he crosses the line which causes you to rethink your relationship
a/n: yoo this was hard to write for a quick second lol i hope you enjoy ~ plus, i got a new job so i'm in training and i'm so excited bc i've been wanting this job for so long (y/n/n = your nickname)
(gif not mine, cred to owner)
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It was getting irritating.
You love Fred with all your heart, but he needed to stop being jealous. Marcus Flint was, is, and always will just be a friend of yours. You two grew up together and are nearly attached to the hip. Never once had you two of you flirted or done anything together. It was purely platonic, but Fred insisted there was something.
And going to Marcus’ prefect dorm after every fight probably didn't help your cause all that well, but he's your best friend. Who else would you talk to? You didn't have many girlfriends and when Fred introduced you to Angelina, you had gotten into a big fight for no reason. But you never asked him to stop hanging out with her even though you wanted to.
You could tell she liked Fred, but you were confident enough to know that Fred would never do you wrong like that. So why does he think that of you? Why does he get to hang out with Angelina, but he gets angry when you barely say two words to Marcus?
It was hard, but you’d work it out and still love each other at the end of the day. But then your birthday came around, and you’d just about had it.
You woke up in a good mood; the river sent in flowing rays of sunlight. Not too blinding, but not too dim either. This would be the second time celebrating your birthday with your boyfriend and if last year was amazing, you couldn't wait to see what Fred had planned for you today.
You took your time getting ready; you put on more make-up than usual and rather than tying your hair up with a clip as you always did, you let it down and fixed some strays to better frame your face. When you walked into the common room, your best friend snuck up behind you and yelled in your ear, “HAPPY BIRTHDAY, Y/N!”
Your natural response was to duck down and cover your ears. You hated when he did that, but you still appreciate the sentiment. You punched his arm as you laughed. “That’s not funny.”
“Oh yeah, then why did I laugh?” Marcus joked. Malfoy and his friends were behind him chuckling, all boys greeting you and wishing you a happy birthday. Marcus flung his arm around your shoulder and walked with you to get breakfast.
Once in the Great Hall, you saw Fred and his friends all laughing at the Gryffindor table and just when you were about to break free from Marcus’ hold, he pulled you back, “Oh no you don’t. You have all day to hang out with Weasley and company, but right now, you are gonna have at least one meal with your best friend.” You weren't going to argue; you didn't want to. If you wanted to sit with Fred, you wouldn't have to put up a fight, you would just do it. At your Slytherin table were Marcus’ other friends, Adrian Pucey and Terence Higgs. You sat in between them and pulled your hood up when they started embarrassing you by singing a birthday song. It was starting to be a great day.
However, across the Hall was Fred glaring daggers at your best friends’ arm around you. He couldn't hear what was going on, either due to the fact that you were pretty far from where he sat, or from jealous rage. “Freddie, you alright?” George asked his brother. “Yeah, just fine, Georgie.” He couldn't stand Flint. He would be enraged with every glance towards you, every whisper in your ear during class, and every time he made you laugh. Fred was sure that Flint was in love with you, but because you grew up with him you were too blind to see it. He was convinced that at any given moment, your ‘best friend’ would take advantage of you.
What also made him upset is that not only did you let Flint wrap his arm around you, you didn't even come say hi to your boyfriend. You always came every morning to his table to give him a morning kiss and sometimes even sat at the Gryffindor table.
In potions class, you sat and waited for your boyfriend to come through the doors. You weren't sure what to expect from him. Fred is an absolute wild card and could come through those doors with anything. And no matter what he brought, he’d for sure get in trouble with Snape.
When he walked through the doors with his brother and Lee, you sat up straight in your seat and waved at him. He saw you, but instead of smiling at you and taking the seat next to yours, he just looked away and sat on the other side of the room. Did something happen? You chose to ignore it until lunch rolled around and he still hadn't come up to you to even say ‘hi’ to you. Had he forgotten your birthday? It could happen, but that doesn't explain why he looked to be in a bad mood.
Once your classes were finished, you walked up the changing stairs and said the password to the Gryffindor dorms. You remembered the updated password your boyfriend gave you the week before and it was your first time using it today.
You didn't know what to expect to see; you secretly wished that today was just a big prank and Fred had actually planned a surprise party of some sort. But when you stepped foot into the room filled with tones of red and gold, there was no party. Just Fred laughing with his friends like normal. Normal without you.
Lee’s laugh died down when he noticed you walking up to Fred. He noticed Lee getting quiet all of a sudden and asked him, “Why are you quiet all of a sudden?” He felt a tap on his shoulder and spun around. “What are you doing in here?”
“Why, are Slytherins not allowed inside?” you joked. Your voice was slightly quiet and had a slight sad tone to it. “I missed you today, is everything okay?”
“Yeah. Fine. I've just been busy. Like you have,” Fred didn't mean to sound so bitter, but he was getting tired of it. He was tired of being second best to Flint.
“What are you talking about?” you asked.
“You've been with Flint all day,” Fred explained himself. You rolled your eyes, two fingers grabbing the temple of your nose from it suddenly starting to become irritated like you were. “Merlin, this again? Freddie, we talked about this. Marcus is just a friend. He's my best friend.”
Fred scoffed, “Y/N/N, you may think that but he doesn't. You trust him too much to see it, but I do. He's not just a friend.”
“You’re friends with Angelina when you know she likes you. And I know it too, but I don't say anything because I don't want to be that girlfriend who controls her boyfriends,” you were tired of playing this game with him. Your voice was heard by everyone in the room and soon enough, tons of peers had all eyes on you. Some either decided to stay, and some like Neville decided to head straight into their dorm rooms and lock the door for safety.
“Me being friends with Angelina is nothing like you being friends with Flint and you know that,” Fred raised his voice louder than anyone’s probably heard him. George and Lee silently guided people out of the common room and up to the dorms. Some people looked over the stairs to get a view of the commotion downstairs. One of them being Angelina herself when she heard her name being called out.
“No you’re right, it's different because he’s not pining over me and waiting for me to become available,” your arms were flailing about in anger, pointing at nothing to put emphasis in your words.
“How many times do I have to say I don’t like Ang? It’s never going to happen!” Angelina heard from up the staircase. Everyone heard him, loud and clear. She ran into her dorm and slammed the door so hard that you could feel the walls shake. “Great,” Fred sighed in frustration. It wasn't the ideal way to let someone down. He intended on talking to her in private without listening ears so she wouldn't be embarrassed.
“I'm not saying you like Angelina. I know you don’t like Angelina. What I’m saying is that you’re wrong about Marcus. I know he doesn't like me, you're just acting insecure,” you yelled back at him..
“I don’t know why it’s so hard for you to see he has feelings for you, Y/N/N,” Fred yelled, “I see the way he looks at you in every class and in the Hall. But you’re too fucking stupid to see–,” he immediately stopped what he was saying.
You couldn't believe what he was telling you right now. You could handle him calling you naive, but stupid? This was low, even for him.
You were getting stares from everyone in the common room. Your pride was more than hurt in this moment; it was destroyed. No words came from your mouth as you were completely still in your seat on the couch. Your nails dug into your skin as it was formed into a tight fist. But the worst of all was that your lips were quivering and you had to fight the tears on your birthday.
Your fucking birthday.
“Well if it bothers you so much, then fine. I'll fix the problem,” you started to speak low for only him to hear you.
“How?”
“I’ll end the problem,” a single tear escaped and trailed down your cheeks. This was the last thing you wanted to do today, but you couldn't take it anymore. He was scared to ask, but his ego got in the way, “And what's the problem?”
“Us,” you stated. He started saying something, but you couldn't hear it as you left. No, you actively ignored everything he was saying at that point. The second you were outside, you started bawling. And you kept at it all the way to the Slytherin common room and into your room.
You paced around your room rubbing your hands on your arms to try and calm yourself down, but nothing was working. Before you even processed it, your legs took you to Marcus’ room without second thought. You continuously knocked on his door until he answered, shirtless and with sweatpants that looked like they were just thrown on.
“Listen, I know it’s your birthday but that doesn't mean that you can do whatever you want–,” he focused in on your face and saw your red cheeks and puffy eyes. You looked behind him and there was a girl with him who sat in his bed looking curious. He looked back to her and just simply ordered, “Out,” which got her moving in seconds.
Once she was gone, he pulled you in and shut his door. Marcus guided you to a black leather chair in his room. “Sit,” his voice was stern, but never harsh with you. “What happened?”
As if by cue, you broke down completely. “It's o-o-over.”
“What is?” he questioned. But piecing it together, there's only one reason you'd be this upset in his room.
He never really knew what to do in situations like when you'd have your usual arguments, always just telling you that everything will be fine and you and Fred would be fine in the morning.
But now, he was feeling two things. One, slight heartache that his best friend is upset in front of him and two, nearly absolute rage that Fred is such an idiot.
Marcus started rubbing your back, “Hey, look at me.” When you shook your head no, he gently tapped on your shoulders until you did. “You are gonna be fine. Okay? You will be fine. There's plenty of other guys here–”
“I don't want to be with other guys, Marcus. I want Fred. I love Fred. But,” you shrugged up both hands, “I don't know. I don't know.” Your best friend pulled you in for a hug.
“Hey, sleep here tonight. You shouldn't be alone right now, especially today.” You nodded your head and kept crying until you couldn't anymore.
“HEY!” Marcus’ voice traveled beyond the corridors. Students were fleeing left and right to move out of his way as he made a straight line towards the group of Gryffindors who sat around a tree outside.
Before they could react to what was going on, Marcus punched one of the tall gingers in his abdomen. “OW, what was that for?!”
“You're going to apologize to Y/N right now,” Marcus demanded.
“You idiot, I'm George,” he corrected, still bent over and leaning on Lee for balance. “Shit, sorry.” Marcus looked at Fred and punched him in the same area quicker before Fred could block it. “You're going to apologize to Y/N.”
With a strain in his voice, Fred looked at the Slytherin in front of him, “What for, she broke up with me.”
“Okay, why? Because you're pathetic and insecure.”
“Is that what she told you?” Fred straightened himself up rubbing on the pain. “Of course she told you, she tells you everything.”
“Yeah, why wouldn't she? I'm her cousin,” Marcus pointed out. If he wasn't so mad, he would laugh at Fred's look of astonishment.
“No, you have different family names. And you don't even look related,” Fred wasn't buying it.
“That's because when I was eight, my dad married her aunt. I'm still her cousin,” Marcus explained.
“She never told me anything, how was I supposed to know?” Fred complained. George and his other friends left the two to argue by themselves but stood at a close enough distance to hear the conversation and be able to jump in if it were to get violent.
“Maybe if you got your head out of your ass, you would actually pay attention to her,” Marcus used his pointer finger to push against Fred’s forehead which caused the ginger to swat his hand away. “So get over whatever complex you have and apologize. If I'm being honest, there's plenty of Slytherins that can treat her better but she wants you for some reason.”
Fred knew he was right. And it was that reason why he always felt the way he did. You were enamored by many housemates, all handsome and rich. But you didn't like any of them. You love Fred. You love the lanky, devious, modestly handsome, funny Gryffindor more than anyone you've ever met.
Fred didn't say anything and walked away. His brother was asking where he was going but he didn't answer. Before he was out of Marcus’ sight, the Slytherin said one last thing, “By the way, I hope you know it was her birthday yesterday.”
Fuck. He picked up his pace and ran towards the dungeons. Halfway there, he figured that he didn't want to show up empty handed, so he made a detour to the greenhouse to 'borrow’ some flowers from Sprout’s personal garden.
You sat on one of the couches in your common room. Across from you was Adrian and Terence, arguing about some Ravenclaw girl. Some younger students passed by and whispered amongst themselves to which you didn't pay any mind to until you heard a third year say something about a Weasley being outside.
You knew it wasn't Ron because after his second year break in with Harry, he vowed that he'd never do it again. You stood up and nearly sprinted outside.
Fred was standing awkwardly outside. He tried to get a student to ask for you to come outside but they would all just scrunch their noses in disgust and keep walking. “Annoying little–”
“What are you doing here?” you asked. Your arms were crossed and you slouched your shoulders a bit. Fred noticed how your cheeks were swollen and the bags under your eyes were tinted a rosy pink. In his left hand, there was a single, large sunflower. He raised it in front of you, hoping you would accept it. “You know I’m allergic to those, right?”
Fred’s eyes bulged out. There is no way I didn't know this. Figuring he’s had enough torture, you spoke again, “I’m joking.”
“O-oh. Heh.” You grabbed the flower from him. “I’m… really sorry. I was such an arse–”
“You are an arse,” you corrected. “Yeah, you’re right. I should have trusted Flint. I should have trusted you. And if you’d let me, I want to prove that I do.”
You released a deep sigh and rubbed your forehead. “Freddie. You have to mean it this time. I can't keep going back and forth with you like this. You can't throw a fit every time I hang out with Marcus. Or Adrian. Or Terence.”
“So is that a yes?” Fred persisted. You looked at him properly in his eyes; he seemed sincere this time. And you could only hope that he was. With a nod of your head, Fred broke into smiles and picked you up from the floor and twirled you around. Your head was still sore from all the crying the night before, but you still had a smile on your face.
When he put you down, he took the hand that wasn't holding the flower and walked with you to the Great Hall for food. “So when were you going to tell me that Flint is your cousin?”
“I figured you’d find out at a family gathering or something had you waited a little longer.” He pinched your nose in response, “And you call me devious.”
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helloalycia · 3 years
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worth the wait [one] // daisy johnson
summary: when your best friend, Skye, keeps running away from home, you're left to deal with the consequences, but then one day, she doesn't come back.
warning/s: mentions of unwanted foster kids
author’s note: this is a five parter and each chapter is quite long bc i got carried away. i've literally been working on this for so long so i hope there's still some daisy johnson stans out there to appreciate this!
part two | part three | part four | part five | part six | masterlist | wattpad
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"She's the only person she talks to... doesn't listen to anyone... just try..."
I twiddled my thumbs as I refrained from rolling my eyes. Mr Lock was pretty stupid if he thought I couldn't hear him with the door slightly ajar.
"...can't do much... good student?"
"She'll tell you what she knows," I heard Mr Lock say more clearly, to the police officer, before the door got pushed open.
I glanced at him as he feigned a smile for my sake, making his way over to his desk and sitting opposite me. The police officer followed after him, taking a seat at the edge of the desk and watching me with curious eyes like she was studying my every move.
"As you are probably aware, Miss Y/L/N, your friend Skye has gone missing," Mr Lock began to explain. "Her foster family have tried contacting her, but they can't find her."
I felt nervous with the police officer watching me, trying not to glance her way for fear she'd know I was hiding something.
"We just want to bring her home safely," Mr Lock continued. "And you're the closest person to her."
It wasn't a question – he knew I was the closest person to her. We'd done this back and forth many times before, every time Skye decided to run away. And it didn't get any easier.
I swallowed hard. "If you're asking me if I know where she is, I can promise you I don't."
Technically I wasn't lying, so that wasn't too much of a stretch.
"Have you had any contact with her since yesterday morning?" the police officer asked.
I shook my head and tried to ignore how warm I was getting. "I usually meet her by the entrance before class, but she wasn't there. I thought she was just pulling a sick day or something."
The officer hummed in response and the way she didn't give away what she was thinking didn't help with my nerves.
"So, you know nothing of Skye's disappearance?" Mr Lock asked with a raised eyebrow. "Anything you can tell us will be greatly appreciated. Her family just want her home and we all want her to be safe. You know the drill."
"I want that, too," I lied as confidently as I could. "You know she's done this before... she'll come back. She always does."
Mr Lock sighed and rested his head in his hands; he was clearly exhausted from having this same chat with me every few months Skye decided to leave.
"I think that's everything," the police officer said, before standing up straight. She glanced at me, adding, "Thank you for your cooperation. Please let your teacher know if you hear anything from her."
I nodded awkwardly. "Will do."
Mr Lock stood up, hand on his hip with mild frustration. He nodded my way and waved a hand dismissively. "Okay, you can go now, Y/N. Back to class, go on."
I nodded and looked between them both before grabbing my backpack and heading to the door. I could hear them talking quietly though, and felt mildly guilty for lying.
"...does this regularly now," the police officer was saying. "She'll turn up."
"She's wasting our time," Mr Lock was mumbling. "She always does this and for what?"
I sighed inwardly before leaving his office and heading back to class. I continued on with my school day as normal, up until lunchtime when I got a message from Skye herself.
Heading to the toilets to ensure nobody would see me, I slipped into a cubicle and pulled out the burner phone Skye gave me the first time she ever ran away a few years ago. She was always cautious of being caught out but still wanted to be able to contact me, so this was her solution. I didn't argue it as I only ever wanted to make sure she was okay and I could at least talk to her.
She'd texted me, it reading: Meet me by the ice cream truck in the park after school.
I was relieved to know she was okay, since it was the first text she'd sent me since she left yesterday morning. But it was frustrating that she'd disregarded my many concerned texts before that.
With a huff, I replied: I'm doing good, thanks for asking. You could've texted sooner, Skye.
It took a moment before she responded. Sorry, mom
I rolled my eyes, knowing she'd have that annoyingly cute smile on her face as she texted from wherever the hell she was.
Another text came through from her. Sorry I didn't reply sooner. Everything cool with the cops?
I sighed and hastily replied: Everything is as cool as it can be. I'll talk to you later when I see you. You safe?
Every time she left, she came back without a scratch to my relief, but it didn't make me feel any better when she would leave again and again. Running was her way of rebelling against everything – the countless foster families she went through, the teachers who ridiculed her, the other students who judged her. I didn't know where she went – it would change every time and I was sure she was making it up to make me feel better – but I covered for her because I cared about her and didn't want her to push me away like she did with everyone else. It was getting old though.
Her text came through and the heaviness on my shoulders lifted with relief. I'm always safe. But thanks for caring.
I always care. You know that.
I do. I'll see you later, Y/N. Love you.
I love you, too. See you later.
She stopped responding and I put the phone away before taking a deep breath. Seventeen and Skye had me feeling like a soldier's wife at freakin' war. She was gonna give me a heart attack one of these days.
"Over here."
I spun around and felt my racing heart calm down when I saw the familiar teasing smile of Skye watching me behind the abandoned ice cream truck.
"You're okay," I breathed out with relief before moving forward and pulling her in for a tight hug.
She laughed but wrapped her arms around me, squeezing gently. "I always am, I told you."
I refrained from rolling my eyes as I pulled away, meeting her gaze. "I'll always worry, Skye."
Momentarily, her playful demeanour disappeared and was replaced with something genuine. "I know... sorry. Thanks for coming."
I ran a hand through my hair and sighed. "Skye, you can't keep running away like this. Mr Lock called me in again. Thinks I know where you are. Says your family are worried."
Skye snorted as she took a seat on the bench nearby. "They're probably throwing a party in my absence. This is just protocol for them. All of them."
I watched her with a pitiful gaze before taking a seat next to her. "The police came again."
"But you covered, right?" Skye asked with a quirked brow.
"Obviously," I said, making her smile, but I didn't return it. "I hate lying to them. It makes me feel... dirty."
"It's not like you're hiding the location of a war criminal, Y/N, chill," she teased, patting my knee.
"Where were you this time?" I asked, afraid to know the answer.
A grin appeared on her lips with remembrance as she reached into her backpack, pulling out a laptop.
I furrowed my eyebrows. "Where d'you get that?" 
She seemed proud as she said, "I won it in a bet."
"Skye!"
"What? It was fair play and I happened to win," she said with a shrug.
I facepalmed. "Skye, if you needed a laptop, you should've asked. I could have asked my parents or– or– I don't know–"
"What? Fundraised for the poor foster girl in class who can't buy a laptop like everyone else?" she cut me off bitterly, before replacing the laptop in her bag. "I'd rather not."
I frowned, moving to rest a hand on her back, but she shook me off harshly before standing up.
"Skye, I didn't mean it like that," I said apologetically, standing up, too. "I just meant– I could have helped. I want to help. I don't want you to have to make bets to get stuff. I just want you to be safe."
Skye and I becoming friends was something I never could have seen coming, but when we were partnered in science class in middle school, we kind of just fell into each other's lives. I knew of her situation with her many foster families and always knew she deserved better. Sometimes though, I think she felt the difference in our lives when it came to little things like buying stuff, and I hated it.
"Skye–"
"It's okay," she interrupted, glancing at me with sad eyes. "I know you want to help. But I'm okay."
Treading carefully, I asked, "Where did you go then?"
She ran a hand through her hair. "Library."
I narrowed my eyes. "You expect me to believe that?"
She met my eyes and shrugged. "You don't have to, but it's the truth."
I couldn't be bothered arguing with her, so I simply played along. "Fine. You went to the library and won a bet with someone, getting their laptop."
"Exactly."
I gave her a knowing look. "When are you coming back? To school?"
She was about to respond, but her phone vibrated and she checked it quickly, her eyes lighting up. I tried not to roll my eyes at her change of mood, not wanting to imagine the bond she'd made with her new friends.
She finally answered. "A few days, I promise."
It wasn't much, but it was better than nothing, so I nodded. "Okay. A few days. You'll keep in touch though, yeah?"
"I will, I promise," she said with a small smile before moving forward and hugging me tightly. "Thanks, Y/N."
I sighed but returned her hug, knowing I couldn't stay mad at her for long. "Just please take care of yourself, Skye. And if you need anything – and I mean anything – just ask. Unfortunately, I have a soft spot for your dumbass."
She laughed and admittedly, my stomach did somersaults at the sound. She pulled away but kept within arm's reach, allowing me to see the honesty shining in her brown eyes.
"I'll see you in a few days," she promised. "I love you."
"I love you, too," I replied, watching as she stepped back to leave.
She sent a final smile my way before running away, leaving me standing there alone and with a worried heart.
"More than you'll know," I muttered to myself, knowing I could never tell her how I truly felt.
"Won't your mum kill you for this?"
I shrugged, leading Skye through the the party-goers and to the kitchen where the drinks were. "She's okay with it because she knows I'm responsible. Plus, I promised her I wouldn't get drunk."
Skye let out a laugh. "Right. You're at a high school party and you're not gonna drink. That's totally happening."
I poured myself and Skye a drink as I quirked a brow. "I never said I wasn't going to drink. Just that I wouldn't get drunk. There's a difference, Skye."
She seemed impressed as she nodded. "Sneaky."
I was invited to this party by some girl in class and thought it would be nice for Skye and I to go to since it had been a while since we'd hung out. She didn't want to go at first, but after a little convincing on my end, she joined me.
We ended up staying there for about an hour when Skye needed to go to the bathroom and I decided to grab a snack from the kitchen. As I was browsing the bowls and considering whether I wanted to risk grabbing food from a shared bowl, I felt someone tap my shoulder from behind me.
When I turned, I was surprised to see a very tall guy stood there with a smirk on his face.
"It's Y/N, right?" he began the conversation, before suddenly raising his hand and reaching for something in my hair. "Sorry, you had some fluff there."
I smiled awkwardly and pushed my hair behind my ear. "Er, thanks. Yeah, I'm Y/N. I'm sorry, I don't think I recognise you."
He shook his head. "I didn't think you would. We don't go to the same school. I saw you walking around and thought I'd introduce myself."
"Oh, er..." I didn't know what to say as I wasn't really interested in his clear advances.
"Can I get you a drink?" he asked suddenly, still smirking at me.
"I already have one," I said conclusively, before aiming to move past him, but he put his arm in the way. I looked at it before raising my eyebrow at him. "You gonna let me go?"
He snickered. "Come on, just let me get you a drink."
"I'm not interested," I told him straightforwardly before attempting to make another move, but he pushed me back gently. "Dude, come on."
"What's one drink gonna do?" he asked persistently (and annoyingly).
"I–"
"She said back off," another voice came out of nowhere, and suddenly Skye appeared and pushed the guy back harshly, stepping between us.
"Skye, I–" I began, but the guy was already glaring down at her with a fake smile on his lips.
"Or what?" he asked rhetorically.
She returned his glare and said nothing. I rested a hand on her arm and tried to tug her backwards, but she wasn't moving. Always the stubborn one.
"What are you gonna do, Skye?" he repeated with bitter humour. "You gonna call the cops? I heard they know you pretty well by now, don't they?"
"Don't speak to her like that," I said angrily, glaring at him.
He began to laugh, shaking his head, before finally walking away. I released a deep breath and watched as Skye turned around to face me.
"Are you alright?" I asked her gently, resting a hand on her arm as I found her eyes.
"Are you?" she countered, looking over me with concern. "That guy was a jackass."
"He was, but I had it under control," I said with reassurance, before downing the rest of my drink and throwing the cup in the bin. "You didn't need to step in."
"Uh, yeah, I did," she said, stepping in my line of sight. "He was a creep."
I rolled my eyes playfully. "Okay, Skye, whatever you say. Thank you."
"You're welcome, now can we leave?"
I shoved her in the shoulder slightly. "We're not leaving. Not yet anyway. There's a foosball table in the other room I wanna play with and you're playing, too."
She sighed dramatically. "Fine."
I grinned at her before dragging her to the other room by her hand.
Another hour passed when I unfortunately began to feel the effects of my drink that I later came to learn was spiked by the arsehole who tried to hit on me. I wasn't particularly aware of my actions, otherwise I definitely wouldn't have done nor said half the things I did. Things like playing beer pong for the third time in a row and losing every game.
"It's just me an' you, Y/L/N," Kate, the girl I was playing with, said as we both a had a cup left. "Think you can win?"
I laughed as I rolled the ball between my fingers. "Third time's the charm...?"
The group of teenagers around us watched with anticipation as I aimed the shot up in my mind. It wasn't exactly helpful that I could barely stand up straight and my eyes were crossing over, making the cup move around slowly.
"One... two... three...," I counted down, before tossing the ball and watching it bounce off the side of the table and onto the floor. "Well, shit."
Everybody laughed as I ran a hand through my hair. Kate chuckled before grabbing the ball and lining it up. Miles better than I did, she aimed quickly and got it in the cup in one shot, resulting in cheers from everyone. I laughed and grabbed the cup, eyeballing the beer. I wasn't really a fan of beer, but a game was a game.
I downed the cup and pulled a face at how disgusting it tasted, before tossing the cup on the floor. I pushed away from the table I was leaning on, before falling back and hitting the floor, butt-first. I giggled to myself as I tried to stand up, but with great difficulty.
"Y/N, there you are!"
I looked up and lit up when I saw none other than Skye standing above me. She bent down and grabbed my hands before helping me stand up. I stumbled into her, but thankfully she caught my weight and let me lean on her for support.
"How did you get drunk so quickly?" she asked with surprise, leading me to the front door. "I've literally been with you. Until you ditched me twenty minutes ago which wasn't cool since I only came to this stupid party because of you."
I laughed. "I'm sorry. I saw the ping pong table and couldn't resist."
She sighed to herself before leading me outside. "You smell like alcohol."
"That's because I had some," I whispered not-so-quietly in her ear, before erupting into giggles.
"I gotta get you home," she mumbled, before searching my pockets. "Where are your keys?"
"My mum is gonna k-kill me," I realised, but a dopey smile was on my lips. "You have to sleepover."
She found my keys and began leading me to my car. "I'm gonna have to, aren't I? So much for not getting drunk."
I covered my mouth to try and stop the laughter from spilling out. She didn't seem amused as she managed to get me into the passenger's seat before rounding the car to the driver's seat. When she got comfortable, I watched her with a childish grin.
"You can't drive," I said in a know-it-all voice. "You didn't pass your test, silly."
She started the engine and began doing her mirror checks before pulling out, muttering, "Nobody has to know."
I watched as she drove, feeling exhausted but lighter than usual. She looked really pretty tonight. I wanted to tell her when we went to the party, but I didn't want her to get the wrong idea. Now however, it was all I could think about and my heart was fluttering at the thought.
"Here, drink this," she ordered, before throwing a bottle of water into my lap.
"But–"
"No buts, just drink it," she said authoritatively, glancing at me.
I didn't want to argue with her, so I began opening the bottle as I giggled to myself. "You said butts."
She groaned to herself and I drank the water as instructed, even if I really didn't want to.
Before I knew it, we had arrived at my house and Skye was helping me to the door.
"Your mum knows you're coming back late, so this shouldn't be a problem," she said quietly, mostly to herself. "Try not to make noise though, okay?"
I nodded obediently, before putting my finger to my mouth. "Sshhhh. Quiet."
She rolled her eyes before using my keys to open the door and drag me inside. I stayed as quiet as I could, letting her take me upstairs and to my room. Only, before we could go in, I heard my mum call out for me.
"Y/N, love, is that you?"
I stared blankly at Skye as she gave me a knowing look with wide eyes, nodding. I continued staring at her as my mum called my name again.
"Answer her!" she whisper-shouted to me.
"But you said to stay quiet," I said with confusion.
She facepalmed. "Just answer her," she said with frustration.
"Well then, no need to get crabby," I mumbled before calling out to mum, "It's me, mum! Skye and I are back!"
There was a pause before she called back, "Okay! Make sure you lock the front door!"
I snickered to myself as Skye shoved me into my bedroom before I could reply.
"Will do, Mrs Y/L/N!" Skye called out before slipping into my room with me.
She flicked on the light as I flopped onto my bed with a satisfied sigh. Suddenly, something was tossed onto my face making me groan as I pulled them off. I realised they were pyjamas.
"Get changed. Now."
I sat up and saw Skye watching me with a stern expression. I couldn't help but smile to myself, giggling. She looked really cute when she pretended to be angry.
"Y/N," she warned.
"I'm not tired," I lied, standing up. I wanted any excuse to keep on talking to her.
"I don't care," she said with a shrug. "You're going to bed whether you like it or not."
"But I wanna talk to you," I whined like a child, before moving forward to grab her hand.
She let go and gently pushed me to the bed. "Don't be a baby, Y/N."
I hugged her quickly, smiling to myself. "Thank you for being here. And for coming with me tonight."
"Yeah, yeah..."
"I'm serious," I said, pulling away and almost falling backwards, but she held me upright. "Thanks."
Her expression softened. "Unfortunately, that's what friends are for, Y/N. I wasn't gonna leave you."
I breathed out, momentarily startled by her sharp gaze. She had the most beautiful eyes, I always thought it. Somehow, she had the power to make me freeze up and forget everything I was thinking or going to say and I never knew why.
"I love you," I said truthfully, not caring what I was saying and too overcome with emotion to care.
She rolled her eyes, a smile of amusement dancing on her lips. "You gotta keep it down, Y/N."
I smiled widely. "But I do."
She gave me a knowing look. "I know you do. And I love you, too, but you have to get ready. Tomorrow morning is not gonna be kind to you."
"No, you don't get it, I really love you, Skye," I said, my mouth going dry as I stared at her with butterflies in my stomach.
"I know," she played along, patting me on the shoulder. "You done, idiot?"
"I'm in love with you," I blurted suddenly, smile disappearing. I stared at her, trying to ignore the blurriness in my vision. "I always have been."
Her smile seemed to fade when she realised how serious I had become. She licked her lips and shook her head slowly, lowering her hands.
"You don't know what you're saying, Y/N," she said quietly.
I grew distracted by her lips, barely acknowledging what was coming out of her mouth. "I do," I told her.
She didn't know what to say, and before I knew it, I had moved forward and pressed my lips to hers. It was something I'd wanted to do for so long and now that I was finally doing it, my shoulders felt lighter as if I wasn't carrying a huge secret on them anymore.
I closed my eyes and momentarily felt her kiss back, hands resting on my chest. It didn't last very long as she gently pushed me away, leaving me face to face with her flushed cheeks and swollen lips. I was sure I didn't look any different.
"You're drunk," she stated awkwardly.
I swallowed the lump in my throat and began to come to terms with what I'd just done, what I'd just ruined. I stepped back and shook my head.
I swallowed the lump in my throat and began to come to terms with what I'd just done, what I'd just ruined. I stepped back and shook my head.
"I'm so sorry, Skye. I–"
"It's okay," she reassured me. "Please, let's just get you ready for bed, okay?"
I avoided her eyes as I nodded, feeling my heart ache with discomfort.
When I woke up the next morning, I didn't remember much from the night before. At least not straight away. All I had to remind me of it was an insane headache that wouldn't go away and a rancid taste in my mouth. Thankfully, Skye caught me up with how drunk I was and how she had to stay with me to cover for me before she left me to shower and freshen up.
Unfortunately for me, showering and freshening up gave me enough time to remember parts of the night before, including the main bit where I kissed my best friend and expressed my feelings for her.
To say I was freaking out was an understatement. I couldn't believe I had done the very thing I had avoided for years. Seeing her at the breakfast table made me wonder why she hadn't mentioned it. Was she embarrassed? Did she want to pretend it never happened? Was she uncomfortable?
I wasn't sure whether to go along and pretend I couldn't remember it, or admit the truth and apologise profusely. In the end, I ended up doing the latter.
We were eating pancakes that she'd made with my mum as I spoke up.
"So, I, er, I'm kinda remembering some stuff from last night," I said awkwardly, glancing up at her.
She slowed down with her eating, avoiding my eyes. "You do?"
I nodded, looking back down to my food. "Yeah. Particularly the, well, I–"
"You don't have to say it," she assured me, and I looked up to see her watching me with a small smile.
"I'm really sorry," I got out with a deep breath. "I don't know why I did that. Or said those things. It was stupid."
"It was?"
"You should've left after that, but you didn't for some reason," I continued with a grimace of embarrassment. "We can totally pretend it didn't happen."
She chewed on the inside of her mouth as she nodded slowly in agreement. I nodded, too, eyes falling to my pancakes.
"Thanks," I mumbled. "And thank you for making sure I was okay. You're a really great friend."
She smiled at me with distracted eyes. "Anytime, Y/N."
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blushinggray · 3 years
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Free! The Final Stroke screeching/reaction (spoilers)
AHHHHH I JUST WATCHED THE FINAL STROKE MOVIE TODAY IN THEATERS ON PREMIER DAY AND IT WAS LAKSJDFOAIFJWOEI to summarize it all, it was Very Gay, which was to be expected but they DID NOT have to get so freaking extra with it 😩😩😩
much screaming and many spoilers ahead
FIRST OF ALL, KIRISHIMA NATSUYA: HE WAS SO FUCKING HANDSOME DAFKJOIEFJOSIDJF. SO HANDSOME. SO HANDSOME AND STUPID AND OVERLY FRIENDLY AS WE LOVE HIM TO BE ALKDSJFOAIEW.
he was in the film for a total of maybe 5 minutes altogether, which was kind of a lot bc the film kind of was just putting all the characters back in for the sake of putting them in imo? for the fans, lol. so everyone could see their faves. and in these five minutes that he appeared, our mans:
bragged about his little brother he's so proud of
got laughed at by nao for being natsuya (aka dumb and straightforward) as usual
trained with sousuke (he was hanging out in the same pool with him, nao, and makoto to train and aid in sousuke's rehab training)
got a call from ikuya after the international swimming competition in sydney!!!! in that same cafe he's always at!!!! and he was with nao at the time he got the call. casual and cool as always, being the cool big brother or whatever. he ended the call with a curt, "you got it. see you. don't catch a cold."
HE WAS HANGING OUT AT CAFE MARON WHILE THEY WAITED FOR THE SYDNEY COMPETITORS TO COME BACK TO JAPAN. HE WAS BEHIND THE COUNTER WITH ASAHI (WHO WAS HOLDING BABY TSUKIMI IN A CARRIER ON HIS CHEST!!!!!) AND HE THREW HIS ARM AROUND ASAHI AND WAS GETTING SO CLOSE LIKE ALKSDJFAOIEJAOEI. I have absolutely no clue what he was saying at the time bc i was too busy freaking out and trying to hold in the sounds bc the theater was so quiet. but his GODDAMN FACE. HE WAS SMIRKING. SO HANDSOME 😩😩😩😩😩😩😩
and of fucking course, they were all out together at a restaurant when the sydney competitors came back, and he was like, "wth no one else is drinking alcohol tonight?" and nao was like "ofc not haha" AND YOU KNOW WHAT HAPPENS NEXT
HE FUCKING FALLS ASLEEP AT THE TABLE AFTER DRINKING AND EVERYONE IS SURROUNDING HIM AND PATTING HIM LIKE "dude..." and ikuya is sitting there like, omg can't believe this mess is my brother....
i thought that just might be his last scene in the film but then we show back up to the kirishima household and natsuya is eating some sort of luxury holiday(?) bento and ikuya is like "aren't you gonna save any for me?" and natsuya's like "of course not. this is for me, you gotta wait until next year xD" and then ikuya just fucking SNATCHES up several different foods and stuffs his face with all of them and natsuya starts arguing with him over them laskjdfoawiefjao where was this brotherly affection all this time?????
and then cut to a few seconds later, natsuya's bumming in his room on the floor like in s3 when ikuya comes in and tells him about his new future goals and alskdjfaoei brothers sharing their ambitions together 😩😩 WHAT IS GOING ON. EVERYONE GETS ALONG SO WELL NOW???
NEXT: we'll go back to the beginning i guess lmfao but they're preparing for some sort of university festival
we start off with an easily misunderstandable shoujo-style situation where asahi is talking to ikuya like, "i know it's your first time... you don't have to be nervous. i know you can do it." and ikuya's like "no! i can't 😣" like the tsun he is backed up against the wall. and then it turns out they're trying to make a mille feuille cake.... but everything he's made so far looked like crepes
and for some damn reason, KISUMI comes outta nowhere into the kitchen and is like "ooooh what's this? a mille feuille cake? although they all look kinda like crepes haha ^^" and then ikuya RUNS THE FUCK OUT OF THE KITCHEN, yelling, "i told you i couldn't do it!!!" like the fucking tsun he is... and asahi is yelling at kisumi like "why did you just say that!!!" and starts rubbing his knuckles into kisumi's head and kisumi's just laughing like, "oh did i do that hehe"
and for some reason... seijuurou is working at the booth in his speedo and swim team jacket. i mean i'm not complaining but sir.... PLS TAKE MY MONEY AND GIVE ME YOUR FAT OCTOPUS BALLS. (he literally started a batter mixing competition with hoshikawa inside the booth, like what are they even doing in the same booth???)
then rin and sousuke show up to ikuya, asahi, and hiyori(?)'s booth, and they're offering them the crepes and then they get into a conversation about smth that leads into them showing the embarrassing photos they have of each other?????? like ikuya has a pic of rin in his maid costume for some reason??? (tho it isn't shown) and rin shows an embarrassing pic of ikuya he has in his phone that he got from natsuya???????????? and then ikuya starts chasing after rin yelling at him to delete it lasdkjfoaei
and then haru is off to the side selling ugly ass bird mascots again lmfao. bc ofc he is. love that weirdo
BUT THE REAL KICKER HERE IS KINJOU!!!!!!!!!!!
APPARENTLY, HIS VILLAIN BACKSTORY COMES FROM HIS CHILDHOOD CRUSH (/exaggerated) ON HIYORI ALSKDJFOAIE WHAAAT. apparently he was that annoying kid in the playground who would go up to hiyori and bother him bc he wanted a friend. bb hiyori was literally like "why are you even talking to me so much?" in his sandbox. and bb kinjou is like, "well there's gotta be smth you like, right? what is it?" and hiyori's like "well i feel kinda happy when i'm swimming... :)" as images of ikuya flash into his mind, that gay ass
BUT KINJOU'S GAY ASS EYES START SPARKLING TOO AND THEN HE'S LIKE "I GOTTA LEARN WHAT THE BIG DEAL ABOUT SWIMMING IS" and he runs home, begs his brother to take him to the pool. but next time he brings his swimming stuff with him to the playground, hiyori isn't there anymore and apparently he left for america at that time (or smth). so poor baby basically got ghosted
but hiyori still knows him when they're older!!!! kinjou shows up when they're throwing out the trash after the uni festival and calls out to hiyori to taught him (which is where that bullying preview scene came from i guess) and alkfjeoiaejoaifj omfg it's like that estranged childhood friends (sorta) trope but it'll never go kinjou's way bc hiyori is and will always be in love with ikuya 😔
kinjou would make such a good yandere tho!!!! he has a feral expression on a few times throughout the movie, and during a race he gets super competitive mid-race and... ngl he was kinda sexy 😳 i'm actually kind of surprised by how taken i was with him in this movie. doesn't help that he's unfairly handsome and his hair looks fucking amazing. i MAY OR MAY NOT be exploring this man in the future..................
i also found the ending with haru pretty interesting!!!! it kind of hints at neurodivergence? smth along the lines of disassociation or multiple personalities? (guess 50% off was kinda right on that end lmfao).
he gets obsessed with beating albert wahlander, which is the most fired up i've ever seen him (to the point of almost hurting himself) and then the shadow or whatever effect albert has on haru kind of just overtakes him and pushes haru out of his own body in a way... it doesn't make sense to describe it this way, i know, but haru is literally watching himself say hurtful things to his friends while being overtaken by this... albert obsessed persona?
it's so interesting to see haru being the one obsessing over someone instead of the other way around for once!!! at the end of the movie (after all the credits) haru says the same thing he once said at the beginning of season 1? about how "at age 5, you're a prodigy. at age 15, you're a genius. at age 20(?), you're average." and this is def gonna be explored/concluded in the second part of the final stroke movie so i'm excited for that!!!! april 2022 come at me!!!!
there were SOOOOO many other things going on, plot wise and fanservice wise, and ofc kyoto animation was fucking TOP TIER SHIT. all the water effects... there was a shot where haru was looking at his reflection in the water and they make a drop fall and spread and shake his reflection in the waves and it was lafkjsefoiaeja fucking glorious. the soundtrack was lovely too. there was a RADWIMPS-esque beginning song and a sexy ass electric guitar buildup for kinjou (which may or may not be contributing to my growing obsession with him...)
AHHHH!!!! it was so good and everyone was so cute and handsome and gay and funny. we literally see every single character we've met before in some way, shape, or form lmfao. i might just go back to the theater and watch it again on one of the upcoming holidays this week.... SO GOOD. SO GOOD.
I LOVE ALL THESE GAY SWIMMING BOYS SO MUCH 😩😩😩
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fydream · 4 years
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34 | previous | next | m.list | main m.list |
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✰ how to be a heartbreaker
↳ so what happens when park jisung, the school’s infamous fuckboy runs into the new girl at school? out of boredom he decides it’ll be fun to have someone new to play with, but little does he know, she’s learning how to be a heartbreaker.
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a/n: hi! an authors note before this chapter begins! 1. yes i know the formatting is different but that’s only because this chapter is 5.9k words long!! (yes you heard me!! 5.9k!! that’s the most ive written for anything published on this blog!!) so there will be a cut bc i know it’s annoying to scroll past long posts haha. 2. i know i didn’t mention it in this chapter but i just wanted to say that if you did want to listen to music while reading this, during y/n and jisung’s scene you should definitely listen to euphoria by bts and that jeno and donghyuck’s song is i.l.y. by the rose. i hope u guys enjoy!
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An hour or so later you're running out your front door to meet Jisung, who already regrets saying he'll wait.
"I'm sorry I'm sorry I'm sorry-" You apologize. "I didn't mean to take that long you must've been bored out of your mind!"
"It's okay." Jisung reassures. "We won't be there that long, we might be a little late to hoco if that's okay with you."
"That's fine!! Just let me text Donghyuck that I'm with you then."
"Okay."
The ride to where Jisung is taking you is quiet, nothing but his various hums to the music he plays as as he drives. It's nice, it reminds you of the first time he gave you a ride home. Quiet, but comfortable.
Instead of looking at your phone you look out the window, then take a second to look at Jisung before looking back out the window again.
You so weren't slick about it either because he notices how you quick you look away and how eager you are to sneak another glance.
"What?" He asks. "Why'd you look at me like that?"
"It's nothing.." You mumble, trying best to hide the smile that's slowly creeping up on your face.
"C'mon." He insists. "Tell me!!" He tries to make it sound like he doesn't care about the topic that much, but his vocal chords work against him as it comes out as a whine.
"Nothing.. It's just.. You look like that, and I look like this.."
"What, you mean beautiful like always?"
Jisung makes note of how quickly your cheeks turn pink at the comment he made.
"You can't just say that!" You argue.
"Yes I can, you're my date tonight after all. What kind of person would I be to not compliment their date?"
You open your mouth, about to speak before he cuts you off from your thought. "And don't worry y/n. I'll take that look as a compliment itself." He snickers.
"Hey!" You shout, earning another laugh from him.
"Hey Jisung?" You ask once the giggles die down.
"Hm?"
"Don't tell anyone I've said this but um.." You start, trailing off at the last part. "Donghyuck has uh, told me things.. about you." You notice how he looks at you, how the expression on his face quickly changes from happy and carefree, to concerned and worried. "I know you probably know what I'm talking about.. I uh- I can kinda.. tell.."
"Yeah." He whispers, trying to block out what you just told him.
"But y'know. I think he's got you all wrong."
"You do?" He asks, a bit too eagerly.
"I do." You say. "From the past how many weeks? Of knowing you, we've gotten close. And I don't think you're anything like that, at least, not anymore.. I've seen the difference between how you act in class and when you're with Jeno and Jaemin, than how you are when we're together and I'd like to hope it isn't just an act. I'm not stupid, y'know."
"I never said you were, I never thought you were either."
"I know. You're not too hard to read, y'know."
For once, Jisung is left speechless. This is the first time anyone has really brought this up on him and he has no idea how to respond. Questions begin to flood his thoughts as he begins to wonder what do you know. Do you know the real reason why he asked you out? How long have you known? What if you never want to talk to him again?
"I-" He tries to speak, but nothing comes out.
"It's okay. I don't know everything about you." You scoff, watching as the boy next to you lets out an exhale. "I don't know that much, but I know enough."
"Enough?" He asks.
"Enough to know that if you are going to break my heart, you should do it right now. Because this is the part where I'm about to tell you how much I like you, and I don't want you getting that satisfaction."
Once you're done talking, you give him a smile. It's a small, innocent, bittersweet smile. It's one of the smiles you would give out to other girls who were ever mean to you, it's subtle, but it gets the point across.
"So what'll be? Park Jisung." You ask, awaiting a response.
Jisung has many things to think about right now, the most important one being driving. He still has yet to process everything you just told him, let alone figure out what to say.
"I.. don't know what to tell you, y/n." He sighs. "I don't want to hurt you.. Can you give me a few minutes?"
"You can have all the time in the world, sweetheart."
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When Jisung finally decides to talk to you once you've reached your destination. If you're going to be honest, it was the most awkward car ride you've been in.
"Okay." He starts, closing his car door. "I know that was way more than a few minutes but I just wanted to tell you this here."
The spot that he had taken you to was a little hill area, on the other side of town. From the top of it you could see the sun set as it's golden rays covered the place you called home. You weren't going to lie, it was beautiful indeed but you didn't care for it at the moment. What you wanted to know was what he was going to say.
"I was.. gonna tell you this here no matter what happened so uh.. Here goes nothing?" There's hesitation, and you can already tell that whatever he was going to tell you was something big. "I'm not here to break your heart, y/n. I know, that's what you thought and probably what everyone else thought too but.. you're different. I know this."
Your brain wants you to call bullshit on that statement but your heart prevents you from doing so. The logical part of you believes that it's probably all a lie, an act just to get you to fall for him. You know this. You know the stories, you've seen the receipts of what he's done to people before you, and you can only assume the things he'll do just to make you fall for him. But if you knew this, then why does it still work?
"Am I really different?" You ask, looking up at him with shaky eyes.
He chuckles.
"Well, yeah. For starters, you're the first girl to ever call me out on my bullshit like that so.." He jokes. "I know.. you're scared. But you shouldn't be." He whispers. "You really are different. I promise."
"Listen, Jisung." You start. "I really want to believe you. It's just hard, because you haven't really given me a reason on why I should."
"That's okay. I understand." He says softly. "I didn't expect you to."
For a second, your heart breaks. It would've continued if he didn't continue talking right then and there.
"But what if I told you all the reasons why you should?" He asks, giving you a shy smile.
"What are they?"
"Well first of all. You're smart. You're smarter than I'll ever be. You've figured me out in what? The span of three months? You don't give yourself enough credit than you deserve. Second of all, you're really passionate about a lot of things. Like that time we argued in the library over the best Stranger Things season? Even though you were wrong, you kept arguing against me."
"Hey!" You exclaim, while Jisung gives you a smile in response.
"Third of all, you're really cute. Don't think I don't notice how your nose scrunches whenever I make a comment you don't like, or how easily you get excited over the simplest things. Remember when we walked to the cafe across the street from school? You got excited because the place had good boba, out of all things. Do you know how ridiculous you sounded?"
"Well- yeah! That's because it was a cafe! And not a boba shop!" You defend.
"I'm kidding." He chuckles. "Also, did you know that whenever you get embarrassed over something not only your cheeks turn pink, but your nose does too."
"You can stop now.. y'know.." You mumble.
"These are just a few things that I like about you, y/n. Do I need to tell you all of them for you to believe me?" He asks, looking at you innocently, as if he didn't just give you the biggest ego boost of all time.
"I believe you." You giggle as he pulls you in for a tight hug.
"Thanks, love." He whispers, placing a light kiss on the top of your head. "Now it's your turn. What were you going to tell me in the car?"
The next hour or so is spent with you two talking about each other, both of you giving out compliments as if there were no tomorrow. If it weren't for the sun being completely gone then you two probably wouldn't have noticed how long you've been alone together.
"Oh my god." Jisung exclaims. "What time is it?"
"Uhm.. Seven fifteen?" You respond, quite confused on why he was suddenly freaking out.
"We have to go, now. They're going to close the doors in like ten minutes."
"Oh. Okay!" You smile, eagerly skipping back to Jisung's car with his hand intertwined with yours. "We better get going then, huh?"
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"Y/n said that she might be late because she's with Jisung already." Donghyuck tells Renjun and Chenle once pull up in front of his house.
Renjun had driven both of them together due to them only being a block away from each other. Donghyuck on the other hand was going to drive you, but when you texted him that you were already with Jisung he decided to ask Renjun for a ride. "Sorry for the inconvenience.. by the way." He mumbles, buckling his seat belt.
"It's alright. Where do you think they went?" Renjun asks.
"Hell if I know. This is the most I've seen Jisung do for anyone." Donghyuck retorts, clearly bitter about being ditched by his best friend.
"Should we be worried?" Chenle asks.
"I don't think so." Donghyuck responds. "Y/n is her own person and she can handle herself, plus what the fuck is Jisung even gonna do? They probably went to take pictures or something."
Chenle shrugs. "I guess so. How are you doing then?"
"What do you mean?"
Chenle shrugs again. "You know what I mean. During the time you two fought you barely said anything to each other, it was just her hanging out with Jisung. Then, even after you made up she ditched us to hang out with him and even now they're probably on a date before the dance or something. How are you dealing with it?"
Once Chenle is done talking, Renjun shoots him a glare before hitting him lightly on the back of his head.
"Ouchie.. That hurt!" Chenle whines. "Aren't you supposed to be driving Junnie.~~" He teases.
"Yeah but I'm also trying to make sure no one fucking cries tonight." He hisses. "Why would you even ask that?"
"I dunno. Was curious I guess?"
"Haven't you heard the phrase curiosity killed the cat?"
"It's been alright." Donghyuck says to prevent Renjun from harming Chenle any more. "I haven't really thought about it I guess? I mean.. I was the one who assigned her to Jisung after all so.."
"Do you think she y'know? Likes him?" He asks.
"Chenle!"
"Whaaaat?? I'm just asking."
"Zhong Chenle you will drop this topic before I stop this car and make you walk to homecoming alone."
"You wouldn't do that. You love me too much."
"Don't try me." Renjun threatens, turning on his blinker.
"Okay okay.. god.."
"Are you two done arguing now?" Donghyuck asks, rolling his eyes. "And no, Chenle. I don't think she does. If she did she would've told me by now."
"Alright Hyuck.. Whatever you say."
Sooner than later the three arrive at school where Renjun drops off Chenle and Donghyuck to hop in the line already forming before leaving to park his car.
"Ask any more questions Lele, and you're walking home." Renjun threatens before Chenle slams the car door on him.
"I mean it this time!" Renjun yells as he watches the two boys walk away from him.
"So." Chenle starts as Renjun drives off. "What's your answer?"
Donghyuck gives him a confused look. "Answer?"
"To y'know.. the question."
"I already told you."
"No silly, I meant your real answer."
Donghyuck is silent for a second before he decides to answer.
"How did you know?" He asks, and Chenle giggles.
"You just told me." He laughs. "I didn't think you'd walk into that one, Hyuck."
"Oh shut up." Donghyuck teases. "It's not like it would matter or anything."
"I supposed you're right." Chenle hums. "But if it did.. Then what?"
"Then I'd tell her to get out of there." Donghyuck whispers to himself.
"Hm?"
"Oh- uh, nothing. I dunno." Donghyuck responds. He knows he has no chance in fooling Chenle but even after that response you'd know not to bother him about the topic anymore.
Once Renjun is done parking he meets up with the two boys and they discuss about how their night will go. While the line slowly moves Renjun argues with Chenle that they should take photos first. Chenle argues back saying that he wants snacks and that all the good ones will be gone if they wait too long. While this goes on Donghyuck has been sending you frequent texts.
[hyuck: hey! we're in line now! see you in a bit?]
[hyuck: are you on your way soon?]
[hyuck: pls hurry.. renle fighting.. dk what to do..]
Needless to say, you haven't responded to any one of them, leaving Donghyuck wonder what you were even doing.
After successfully waiting in line and making it through their schools quick security check, Chenle, Renjun, and Donghyuck had finally made it inside the gymnasium where the dance was being held.
Once inside they move to an quieter place, where they could talk without having to yell over the already loud music that's being played.
"What about you Hyuck?" Renjun asks. "What do you want to do first?"
"Hmm? What? Sorry." Donghyuck responds, checking his phone once more before pocketing it. "What's happening?"
Renjun frowns. "You weren't listening, huh?"
"No, sorry." He apologizes. "Y/n hasn't texted me back yet and I don't want to do anything until she gets here y'know?"
"Don't worry Hyuck, it's possible they're still outside or something. They just opened the doors y'know."
"Yeah I know.. I'm just.. yeah."
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Ten minutes later, you still haven't responded and the music is loud, but it's not loud enough to drown out Donghyuck's heartbeat as he frantically awaits your arrival. As each second passes by he begins to regret letting you go with Jisung, because you're never late, but the second that he lets Jisung control how your night starts you're ten minutes late and they're be closing the doors to the dance soon.
Renjun begins to notice that you aren't here either and decides walk over to Donghyuck to ask if he knew where you were.
"Hyuck, is Y/n here yet?" He asks, tapping his shoulder lightly.
Donghyuck gives no verbal response, instead he shakes his head while he fiddles with his phone checking back if you happened to text him. "I don't know where she is Junnie.."
"Hey, it's okay." He reassures. "It's not like she's in danger or anything, I know you don't trust Jisung that much but I doubt he'd do anything to hurt her. She'll be here soon, okay? I promise."
"Junnie~~" Chenle whines, popping up from behind them. "I'm boredddd. Can't we just do something already?"
"Lele, not now." Renjun shoos. "We're talking here."
"It's okay." Donghyuck says. "You guys can go do something, it's fine. I don't want to keep you from having fun tonight."
"Are you sure?" Renjun asks, he knows not to believe Donghyuck but he's getting quite annoyed at the fact that Chenle keeps pulling at his arm.
"Yeah. It's fine, if anything happens I'll text one of you."
"You heard him!! Let's go!!" Chenle exclaims before grabbing Renjun by the arm to drag him to god knows where.
"Chenle!" Renjun yelps. "I-I'll text you Hyuck! We won't be gone for long. I swear!" He yells back at him.
And then the two were gone. Leaving Donghyuck alone, by himself.
One of the worst feelings in the world is feeling alone, in a place full of people.
He doesn't know why he let them go off without him, maybe it's because he wanted to be alone, or maybe it's because he didn't know any better. But standing alone on the sides of a school dance, with no one to talk to really shows how lonely you are. He knows none of you meant to do it to him on purpose, it's just him overthinking things after all. But if he was okay with them leaving, then why did it hurt?
Deciding it was awkward enough to just stand there and people watch, Donghyuck decides to go back on his phone. He checks your text messages only to see no response. "Great." He thinks to himself. "You said you would be here, but you're not. I guess you did spend a lot of time with them after all."
Donghyuck feels himself about to cry when someone taps his shoulder. He closes his eyes trying to fight back the few tears that threaten to spill before having to talk to whoever was with him. He didn't want to answer any questions on why he was crying, only knowing that if someone asked him if he was okay he wouldn't be able to control them.
When Donghyuck looks up from his phone, the last person he expected to see is standing in front of him.
"Hi." Jeno greets. It's short, and airy. But it's just enough to get his heart racing. Is it from fear? Worry? Or is it from the fact that his ex, just so happened to catch him at the wrong place and wrong time.
"Hi." Donghyuck responds. It doesn't mean much because he didn't put any emotion into it, instead he decides to focus his attention elsewhere. He looks past Jeno towards the entrance of the gymnasium in hopes of seeing you walk in, spoiler alert, you didn't. "Chenle and Renjun picked the worst time to leave.." He thinks to himself. "I can't blame them though, after all I did tell them it was okay."
"You um- You look beautiful." Jeno compliments, giving Donghyuck a half-hearted smile. "So I've been told.." Donghyuck murmurs before attempting to push past the boy standing in front of him. "Listen. I don't have any time for this right now. Y/n said she would be here and she's not so-"
"Hyuck- Donghyuck, wait." Jeno starts, grabbing Donghyuck's wrist to prevent him from going any further.
"What the fuck? Let go of me!" He yells. It's loud enough to get the attention of a few people around him, but the music the DJ is playing is way to loud for them to have heard what he said.
"Hyuckie, I- Will you please let me explain?" Jeno practically begs, this is the first time that he and Donghyuck have interacted in person since the break up and he can already tell that he's blowing it.
"Don't- Don't call me that." Donghyuck states, hesitant to answer. "You've already explained yourself enough."
"Hyuckie.. Please. We haven't talked in months, you haven't let me say anything."
Of course, Jeno had to find Donghyuck in one of these moments, where one of their songs was being played by the DJ. It was one of the songs that Jeno had showed him, meaning it left such a big impact on his heart. He doesn't know what to do, does he accept Jeno's offer and let him explain? Or does he continue the rest of his high school career pretending that Jeno doesn't exist, leaving many questions unanswered.
Panic starts to fill Donghyuck as he looks around to see if anyone had noticed him and Jeno together. It would cause a bunch of talk, considering that fact that they were both pretty popular and that teenagers loved to start rumors.
He notices Jaemin as he spots Jeno from across the room, by the way Jaemin is walking towards them he can tell that he was looking for Jeno himself, clearly unhappy and very confused where he found him. He glances back at the entrance for a split second before looking towards the direction that his two friends had gone off in, only to see them walking back towards him, just as confused as Jaemin is. He can see the concern rise in Renjun once he sees who Donghyuck is with, as he grabs Chenle's arm to drag him across the makeshift dance floor that their school has created, where Chenle had decided to stop to talk to a few friends.
He looks back towards the entrance and to his luck he sees you and Jisung walk in. Thankful, he lets out a sigh of relief because he sees that you're here and that you're safe. He notices the smile that you have on your face and though he was a bit far away he can tell it's a genuine smile, like one of the one's you would show him when it was just you two hanging out. "I guess I worried for nothing." He thinks to himself, as he watches you two skip in, hands intertwined.
And amongst all this commotion happening at once, his ex, out of all people had to come up to him and ask him a question he knew he wouldn't be able to answer. So what does he do? He panics, of course.
"Oh my fucking god.." Donghyuck mumbles to no one in particular. Jeno seems to hear it but he doesn't process it because he's too busy being dragged by Donghyuck who was attempting to blend in with the big group of people who happened to pass by.
When Renjun, Chenle, and Jaemin end up where Donghyuck and Jeno were previously standing they're left more confused on where the two went. Though it's loud, Donghyuck manages to pick out Renjun's voice yell "What the fuck?" over a crowd of teenagers.
Donghyuck smiles to himself, knowing that he successfully got away. He didn't think it'd work, he'd only seen it in movies before and you know what people say, it's just movie magic after all.
"Where are we going?" Jeno asks innocently.
"Outside." Donghyuck responds, leading their way towards the "exit" sign on the other side of the gymnasium.
"Why?" Jeno asks once more, and Donghyuck turns around just to shoot him a glare.
"So no one. fucking. sees us." He grits through his teeth.
Needless to say, Jeno doesn't ask any more questions after that.
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"Where is everyone?" You ask Jisung through the fit of giggles you let out.
"I dunno. Jeno isn't answering his phone so I'll call Jaemin, yeah?" He responds, just as giddy as you are.
"Oh, I was talking about Renjun, Chenle, and Hyuck."
"You can hang with us for a bit!" Jisung insists.
"I know but I haven't seen them all day." You pout. "I'll hang out with you after!! Besides, they're my best friends after all. How would you feel if I took you away from Jeno and Jaemin?"
"My dear you're allowed to do that any day of the week. I like you better than them anyways." He teases.
"Oh shut up. You know what I meant." You snort. "Can we just go find them please?"
"Yeah, hold on- Hi Jaemin!" Jisung says through his phone. "What? Sorry.. I can't really hear you. Is that Renjun? Why is he yelling at you?"
Your ears perk up hearing the name of your friend leave Jisung's mouth. "Renjun?" You ask, looking at him curious. "Are they okay?"
Jisung nods at you while trying to hear what Jaemin has to say, it's hard considering the fact that there's not only loud music coming from his phone speakers but the voice of an angry boy as well, and to add onto that, the same music being played just a couple feet away from you.
Pouting, you look at him. Jisung can tell you're worried about your friends by the way that your pupils shake as he pulls you into another tight hug, hoping to ease a bit of the worry.
From then you can kind of make out the conversation on the phone, it's something about Jeno and Donghyuck being together then suddenly disappearing out of thin air, like a magic trick.
"Where are you?" Jisung asks.
"We're in one of the back corners." Jaemin yells through his phone. "The uhh.. One on the right, your left."
"Okay. We're on our way." Jisung says before hanging up.
"I guess our night of fun had to end somewhere." He tells you before you two head further into the gymnasium to meet up with your friends.
Once you meet up with the three boys you're greeted with a hug from Chenle while you watch as Renjun and Jaemin argue.
"So they were right here?" You ask tapping Renjun's shoulder.
"Yeah. And then all of a sudden they disappeared." He says, quite frantically.
"Y'know worrying isn't going to do anything." Jaemin taunts.
"Yeah! And you making snarky comments doesn't help either!" Renjun shoots back.
"Can you two stop bickering a second?" Chenle snaps, surprising all of you. "We have no idea where the fuck they went and for the past five minutes all you two have done is argue? Why haven't we checked anywhere yet?"
"Because, Lele. They could be anywhere. We're in a room full of teenagers." Renjun states.
"For once, I agree with this one." Jaemin adds on, earning a glare from Renjun and a facepalm from Jisung.
"Okay? And? Have you ever thought about the fact that they could y'know, be outside?" Chenle asks.
"Why would they be outside?" You ask.
"Because it's loud in here, and it looked like they wanted to talk."
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"So.." Jeno says, swinging his legs back and forth. He was currently seated on top of one of the picnic tables your school had, while Donghyuck was standing across from him, leaning against the corner of a wall.
"You said you would explain, so explain." Donghyuck states.
Jeno takes a deep breath as he stops swinging his legs, he looks at the ground before looking up towards Donghyuck who was already looking at him, clearly annoyed at the fact that Jeno was stalling.
"It was a dare." He starts, before Donghyuck cuts him off.
"Yes I know. We all know." He spits.
"But theres more." Jeno says once again. "As you know, Jisung dared me to ask you out and me, being the asshole I was back then, I agreed and decided to do so.." He pauses for a second. Trying to think of what to say next.
"Listen are you gonna keep stopping or are you going to tell the story?" Donghyuck comments, it's only been two minutes and he's already fed up with Jeno's bullshit.
"I am. I'm just trying to think about the right words to say."
"Why? So that I can fall back in love with you?"
"No, Hyuckie-"
"I said, don't call me that."
"Why?"
"Because Jeno!" Donghyuck yells, voice cracking as he tries to control the same tears from earlier from falling. "I am still in love with you! Each time I hear you say that stupid nickname my heart does leaps and I can't fucking stop it!"
His voice is loud enough for you to figure out where he is, and while the other students outside look around trying to find out what's going on, both you and Renjun take off running towards the sound of Donghyuck's voice.
Arriving in time to hear Donghyuck finish the last words of his sentence he can't tell if he's hurt or if he's relieved to see you. A sense of relief washes over him once he spots you, Renjun, and Chenle running in his direction. But then he sees Jisung and Jaemin, not that far behind you three, and he feels hurt, betrayed to say the most.
"So this is why you asked me, huh?" He scoffs, looking at Jeno with glossy eyes. "So you and your friends can get a little more enjoyment of my misery."
"Hyuckie- I-" Jeno starts.
"Save it. I don't ever want to hear from you again, Jeno. I can't believe I even believed you would tell me the truth."
Nothing more is said as Donghyuck walks away from all of you, and Jaemin and Jisung run towards Jeno. It's quiet, despite there being the sounds of the muffled music that's only being played from a hallway away, it feels like a horror movie with the unsettling silence between all of you.
Renjun is the first one to talk. His voice not only startles you, but grabs the attention of Jeno, Jisung, and Jaemin who happened to be a few feet in front of you.
"What the fuck happened?" He asks, looking at Jeno in the eye.
"I wanted to tell him that I'm sorry.. and that I missed things the way they were.." Jeno says, voice barely above a whisper.
Both you and Chenle can tell that Renjun is about to start yelling and if someone doesn't stop him now then fists will be thrown. Renjun is about to start talking again when Chenle interupts him.
"Junnie." He says softly, placing a hand on his shoulder. "It's not worth it. Let's just go find Hyuck, okay?" He eases.
Renjun takes a second to sigh and relaxes before deciding to head off with Chenle, he know's it'll only make things worse but he really wants to tell the three boys off and possibly throw a punch or two. "It's okay.." Chenle coos at him.
"Y/n, are you coming?" He asks, looking back at you.
"Uhh.. Yeah. Just give me a second. I'll meet up with you in a bit, okay? Just text me where you are." You say quickly before glancing over at Jeno and his crew.
Chenle looks at you, confused on why you were looking at Jeno. It only takes him a second to realize what you were doing before he walks off with a hesitant nod. "Um.. Okay.. Just uh, don't be long. I know Hyuck wanted to see you."
"Thanks Lele. You're the best." You say, before talking off towards Jeno.
"Lee Jeno." You state, standing where Donghyuck previously was. You earn a few glances from Jisung and Jaemin, ask if they were asking each other why you were here and how long you've been there. It's not because they were doing anything bad or wrong, it's because of the fact that they were caught being nice and genuine to one of their friends, something that barely anyone has seen before.
"Y/n." Jeno sniffs, trying his best to wipe away the tears that had managed to leak out. "What are- What are you doing here?"
"Save it." You say, walking towards him. You push Jaemin away as you take a seat on top of the table next to him. It earns you a glare from Jaemin, but you shrug it off and ignore him once he start's complaining that you stole his spot.
"Just- Just tell me everything." You sigh, awaiting a response from the boy next to you.
Jaemin shoots you another look before Jisung walks away with him, knowing this should be a private conversation. They don't go far though, just out of earshot.
"This is my fault." He starts. "If I just continued letting him hate me, then I wouldn't have hurt him like that.."
"It's not your fault, you just wanted to explain things. Do you want to tell me what you were going to tell him? Or is that too personal?" You ask.
Jeno is hesitant to answer. His first initial thought is no, but as the seconds go by his answer changes to yes.
"Start from the top. What happened?" You ask.
You're gentle, and being patient with him. It's something that he's thankful for. It's also something that reminds him of Donghyuck, because whenever the two of them had disagreements Donghyuck would always wait for Jeno to explain, this was the first time he hadn't.
"Okay well.." Jeno sniffs. "If you didn't already know.. Donghyuck and I used to date. Our relationship started off from a dare but as our months together passed by I began to enjoy his company a little bit more. I don't know what it was, and if you asked me I wouldn't be able to tell you but there was just something about him that I ended up liking. Maybe it's the way that his hair flopped on his face each time he ran up to me, or maybe it's because of how tightly he hugged me and how gentle his kisses were, but it was something." He pauses for a second, reliving through a few memories. "I ended up catching feelings.. and as soon as I figured out that I did, he found out how we got together."
"Oh." You sigh, not looking at him.
"I was going to tell him that I meant everything I told him.. All the 'I love you's' and the 'You look beautiful's' but he just wouldn't let me talk.. And then you guys came and that just- that only made things worse.. and now- god.. now he's gone. He said he never wants to see me again."
"I'm sorry, Jeno. It's my fault." You say softly, taking all the blame. "I'm the one who brought everyone here, if it weren't for me then you probably would be talking to him right now."
"It's okay." He reassures. "It's not your fault.. You just wanted to help your friend. I'm sure it would've gone poorly even if you weren't here."
"I doubt that's true."
"Are you kidding me y/n? He hates me! And he the worst part of it is that he has every right to do so.."
"I didn't know people who hated each other confess to each other about still liking one another." You joke, hoping to earn a laugh from Jeno. "Besides, it's not like you won't see each other again. You still have time to make things better, plus you have me on your side."
"My side?" Jeno asks.
"Well yeah. You still like him don't you?"
Jeno sighs, he's lucky you aren't paying that much attention to him because if you did you would've noticed the way he looked at Jisung and how it hurt him more to let you keep going on like this. Nonetheless he lets it happen and he wonders if he really does deserve your help.
"You're too good, y/n."
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